Taken Down a Few Notches
by nighinvisible
Summary: Kiba and Sasuke make a sexy mix. No, it works, I promise. You should try it out. Some violence, some angst and hardcoreish lemonsyaoi. smutty, even? First time authorCOMPLETED!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

A/N: This is my first-ever fan fic. I reworked a lot of this story, so if you have been reading, much is all new. Also, for the record, I heart Kiba so much!

So please, read my story, and I hope you enjoy it!

It felt good to be coming home. Though the mission had not been a hard one, Kiba could feel the exhaustion wrapping it's way through his muscles. Unconsciously, he stretched his arms overhead and looked over at his teammate, Shino.

"Tsunade is sure to be proud of us for this!" Kiba and his teammates had worked so hard to ensure their client got to his destination that there was no way people wouldn't recognize the good job they had done.

"Hn." Shino was horrible at conversation, but the most reliable teammate Kiba could ask for. He thought about how often the quiet ninja was misjudged due to his weird looks and bug ninjitsu—and how the people who misjudged him quickly learned his extreme skill and talent.

The mission had sounded simple: escort the client to his destination. What the scroll and the client had failed to specify is that though there was eventually a final destination, he had many, _many_ stops to make first. They had been walking for weeks, constantly alert. The miles and the mental sharpness had taken its toll and even Kurenai, who was no longer needed by the older team but liked to join them on occasional missions, looked like she would fall over from fatigue.

Kiba glanced over at Hinata, his other teammate, just as she stumbled and began to fall. Instinctively, he rushed to her side and caught her.

"Hinata, what good is your Byakugen if you can't even see a rock in the road?" But Hinata was too tired to even blush and stutter. Her eyes fluttered close and Kiba sighed and heaved her up over his shoulder. He would most definitely pay later for taxing his body this much, but Hinata was a teammate and more importantly, she was very tiny. He didn't mind looking good while helping out a teammate.

Finally, the entrance gates to Konoha were in front of the team. A wave of relief hit all of them so much that Kiba imagined he could see his companions shake with it. Or maybe they were just shaking because their muscles and minds were close to the breaking point, and the thought of their beds was enough for a last bolt of energy.

"Alright, Alright! HOME! Kurenai-sensei—let's go talk to Tsunade and complete the mission!" Kiba looked forward to the Hokage seeing him with Hinata and then hearing about his ability to keep his client safe. Well, with the help of his team, of course.

"Kiba, while I appreciate your willingness to come with me to the Hokage, I am perfectly able to turn in our mission alone—besides, you really need to get Hinata to her house." Kiba wanted to protest, but he did not even need his sensitive ears to hear Hinata snoring softly over his shoulder. If she was asleep with his bony shoulder poking into her, then he knew Kurenai-sensei was right. He would just have to trust that she would tell his side of the story well so the Hokage knew what an excellent ninja he had become.

The team parted ways and Kiba began to trudge toward the Hyuuga mansion. When he offered to carry his shy teammate when she was stumbling, he did not mind because he thought people would see how supportive he was and praise him. Of course he cared for Hinata—her shy disposition could get on anyone's nerves (especially when she was near that baka, Naruto…) and her stuttering drove him crazy, but he held a soft spot for the small girl. However, he was tired and small as the white-eyed girl was, she was beginning to feel like she weighed as much as the memorial boulder.

He turned an eye to his hand on his teammate's ass, using the last bit of chakra he had to hold her up and keep her steady. She was like him a bit, he thought. He saw in her things he felt other people ignored, such as her ability to completely kick ass! All the boys paid attention to Ino, with her long blond hair and her mental ninjitsus, and Sakura with her pink hair and her extensive knowledge of all things shinobi. While each of those girls was impressive, he knew from sparring with Hinata that if she were to fight either girl, she would completely dominate them with her chakra damaging techniques and byakugen.

He was like his teammate, he mused, in that he was much stronger than people gave him credit for. Thinking about Ino and Sakura only fueled his frustration. Sakura was teammates with that jackass, Naruto. Kiba could never think of Naruto's name without attaching an insult to it. How could he not, when the idiot constantly pulled pranks and messed up his missions? And yet it seemed the boy was always the center of attention—Iruka-sensei adored him, a Sannin was training him and he had even earned Sasuke's respect ever since Sasuke returned to the village. Hell, even though the village hated Naruto for some unknown reason, he still at least had recognition as something special, be it good or bad.

_Sasuke_. His very name made Kiba growl. There was a jerk who, no matter what he did, always seemed to be the topic of everyone's conversation. It killed Kiba that the Uchiha's family history and good looks made all of the girls love him regardless of the fact that he was an asshole. It had been a couple of years since Sasuke had returned. They all grew up, becoming chuunins—hell, Shikamaru had already become a jounin—and everyone had started to pair off romantically in one way or another. Kiba had gone on dates, had even slept with a couple of girls, until he slept with a girl who called out Sasuke's name in the bedroom, ending any potential relationships with females of the village for the time being. Remembering the girl moaning Sasuke's name under him caused Kiba's lip to curl and rage begin to accumulate in his gut. Damn Sasuke and his good looks.

It didn't end with his good looks, either. Ever since Sasuke had been Konoha's number one rookie he had been every boy's envy. Even Kiba would admit to being jealous of Sasuke's skills. He was able to produce the chidori during the chuunin exam, an extremely advanced technique! Other than Naruto, Kiba couldn't think of one guy he knew that liked Sasuke as a friend, but he knew that each on of them wished they could be as good as him.

It didn't matter that Sasuke ran away with Orochimaru. It didn't matter that each member of team five had almost died trying to save him. It didn't matter that Sasuke slept with all the girls, only leaving them the next morning in a bed wet with tears. It didn't matter that Sasuke was the world's biggest asshole, period. No matter what he did, people still focused on him, drove him into this spotlight that was so big and so bright that no one, let alone Kiba, could ever hope to be there too. Damn Sasuke!

The Hyuuga Complex was always a strange place for Kiba to visit. It felt so secluded and solemn. Kiba liked Neji a lot though, and hoped he might run into the boy as he dropped Hinata off. He slowly drug his feet to the front door, very ready to get rid of his sleeping burden. After knocking, it took what felt like forever for someone to finally come to open the door.

Neji opened the door and his face immediately blanched.

"Hinata! Is she…" 

"She's fine! She's just sleeping," Kiba laughed." The look of panic swiftly dropped from Neji's face and he breathed an audible sigh of relief. Once Kiba sensed the slowing of Neji's heartbeat to a more normal pace he shuffled his feet and began to shift Hinata's weight.

"Neji, uh, do you mind…" Kiba shifted his eyes to his teammate's rump and Neji immediately caught on.

"Of course!" Neji grabbed Hinata and held her, her head leaning on his shoulder. Kiba shook his head, surprised the normally alert Hinata slept through it all, but he could certainly understand it. He felt so tired he was amazed he had even made it to the Hyuuga homestead. The desire to be home hit him, and all he could picture was himself curled up in his bed with Akamaru. He had grudgingly sent his beloved dog home a few days early, both because Akamaru was about to be sick from fatigue and also to let his family know he was fine, just a little behind schedule. He hadn't felt the same since Aka left. His pet was his best friend, and instilled confidence and calm in his master. Perhaps all of his anger toward Sasuke was really coming from his tiredness and missing his dog.

Clapping Neji on the shoulder, Kiba said his goodbye and began the long walk home. The ache of the road was creeping into every muscle, weighing down every bone. Each step became a challenge, and he had quite a distance to go. Though he thought maybe he should stop and rest, he was sure if he sat down he would never get back up. Besides, the Inuzuka clan was known for their hardiness and he would not disappoint his family now by stopping.

He was about halfway home when Kiba heard something shift to the side of the road. He looked over and there was nothing there. Scratching his head, he was about to begin walking again when there was another shuffle of leaves in the trees behind him. He whipped around and looked up, only to see Sasuke sitting on a branch, glaring down at him.

"What the hell are you looking at?" Kiba was so pissed and was too tired to be putting up with any of Sasuke's attitude.

"Kiba, I thought your dog ears were supposed to have advanced hearing. I've been following you for the past mile to make sure you got home ok and you just notice my presence now? How did you ever become a chuunin, Kiba?" Sasuke gloated, twirling a kunai on his finger.

"Asshole, I became a chuunin because of my skills. I trained hard and earned it—I didn't need my teammates to save me and take me home. I didn't need my teacher to vouch for my abilities…unlike some." Kiba growled low. Sasuke was picking a fight and he knew it. Ever since the other boy had returned, he seemed to be on an unspoken probation by the Hokage. He was never trusted with very dangerous missions and was often even excluded, left to "train his sharingan" in the village. While Kiba could understand the frustration Sasuke might feel at not being trusted, he didn't need the bored jerk picking fights with him. At least not now, when he was just so tired. He also didn't want to look weak in front of Sasuke. He willed the other boy. Please, just leave him alone right now. Please, just let him go home.

Unfortunately, Kiba's response had pushed a button in the Uchiha and he stood up on the branch. Kiba couldn't tell if Sasuke was going to attack or run.

"Baka." Sasuke spit out the insult and disappeared, much to Kiba's relief. Any other time he would have taken that asshole. In reality, Sasuke and Kiba had never fought, never even sparred, and Kiba was interested in pitting his skills against the famed sharingan user. Interested, and scared. He had seen Sasuke when he got angry, and was not sure he and Akamaru could handle it.

Kiba shook off his fear. Not handle _Sasuke_? What was he thinking? This was the boy he had to go save, for ramen's sake! That was an awful night, when he and Akamaru had almost died. A pain shot through him from the scar where he had stabbed himself, reminding him to stay focused on just getting home.

Just. Have. To get. Home.

Kiba smiled and picked up his pace. Or, he thought he had picked up the pace, but all he could see was the ground speeding toward his face, and then blackness.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

A/N: Thanks to everyone for being patient with me as I re-work this story. This bit is all new and completely different from before, so if you catch any glaring mistakes, please let me know.

His nose itched and he could feel the warmth of sunlight on his skin. Slowly, Kiba opened his eyes, squinting from the brightness. The softness surrounding him made him suddenly aware that he did not know where he was. His ninja instincts caused him to shoot up in bed and take a quick survey of the room. It was his room, in his house, and though he was momentarily relieved he couldn't remember getting here. In fact…

Sasuke. The last thing he could remember was Sasuke being the typical ass he always was. So how did he go from being on the road to being tucked in (he glanced under the covers—he was in his pajamas! And clean!) and changed in his house? And, he had to admit, well rested, which meant he had been there for a while.

A knock at the door and a low growl brought him instantly back from his fronts. He knew that growl anywhere!

"Come in!"

The door opened and Akamaru bounded in and up on to his bed, covering his face with generous dog kisses. Kiba laughed hard and hugged his companion, burying his face in the clean and soft-scented fur. He realized then how much he had missed his dog, and regretted ever sending him away in the first place.

"K-Kiba?" Hinata stood in the doorway, hovering and waiting for an invitation in. Because of the pressures of the Hyuuga household, both Shino and Kiba had given her a key to their respective apartments. In return for their giving her a place to escape, she helped them keep their places clean and occasionally cooked them dinner.

"Come in, Hinata! I was so tired after the mission and dropping you off at home that I must have sleep-walked here. I don't remember any of the walk home or getting cleaned up!" Kiba was still joyfully scratching Akamaru behind the ears and playfully rolling the dog around on the bed—though Aka was big and this was no easy playing.

"W-w-well, a-actually…" Hinata was a bright red and looking at her shoes.

"I mean, I know I exchanged some words…"

"You d-didn't…he c-carried…"

"with that asshole…"

"Sasuke c-carr…"

At this point, Sasuke stepped into the room behind Hinata, causing Kiba's eyes to go wide.

"_SASUKE_?"

The other boy smirked at Kiba. He leaned on the doorframe and crossed his arms on his chest.

"Sasuke, what the hell are you doing in my home?" Kiba was furious.

"I-I tried to t-tell you…" Hinata was taking her time spitting this out, and looking at what must have been a fascinating spot on the floor.

"This 'asshole,' as you say, carried your heavy ass all the way home after you so gracefully passed out in the middle of our, uh,'discussion'. If I had known that it was going to be too much for you, I would have left you alone. Instead, you dropped like a genin in his first battle and since I felt responsible, I carried you here, cleaned you up and stuck you in bed." Sasuke looked so damned pleased with himself, the glow in his eyes. Kiba hated the way the boy could keep his face impassionate and cold, yet let the dog boy know exactly what he was feeling.

It was a hard lump of information to digest. The mortification Kiba felt at passing out in front of the cold boy alone was enough to send him into missing-nin status for weeks, but more than that, it was that Sasuke had been in his home. In his room. Oh God, in his bathroom, helping him…to bathe? Sasuke. Sasuke had seen him naked. Had undressed him. Had washed his body. Sasuke had undressed him and seen him naked and oh my god. Kiba's face began to burn in shame. Sasuke had bathed him like an infant, and tucked him into bed, and now Kiba's wound from when he stabbed himself throbbed with a hint that Kiba might should have died when he stabbed himself years ago rather than go through being babied by that pompous jerk. Kiba suddenly found it hard to breathe and realized he was shaking.

"So… what are you doing here now, pervert? Come back to molest me in my sleep?" It was a cheap shot and he knew it, but he needed to gain some control in the situation—he couldn't let Sasuke have it all. Besides, the image of Sasuke stooped over his naked body in the tub was still playing over and over in his mind, and it made him feel terribly uncomfortable. Hinata's jaw dropped at Kiba's retort and her face flushed.

"Pervert? I would never molest you in a million years, dog boy. " Sasuke smirked at Kiba, but inside he was full of anger. How dare Kiba accuse him of something so…disgusting!

Kiba glanced at Hinata—poor girl, she looked so intimidated and out of place. Her hunched body looked like she was trying to disappear into the wall. For a moment, he wished he could join her.

"You would, too, Uchiha. After all, you obviously washed me while I was unconscious. How am I to know what you did and didn't do? I feel violated!"

"Baka, I didn't do anything except try and help you out. Obviously days without your dog have left you sexually unsatisfied and thinking crazy perverted thoughts. Don't think the village doesn't know what goes on in the Inuzuka clan with their pets. You dare to call me a pervert?"

No one in the room spoke. No one could believe Sasuke had gone there. It was true that there was a small joke around Konoha involving the 'closeness' of the Inuzuka clan with their pets, but no one actually thought it was serious. And no one ever said it to an Inuzuka'a face.

"I don't know what you are talking about Sasuke, but you just crossed a line, and I think it is time for us to take this outside." Kiba was seething with rage—he did not like arguing with Sasuke, but he was used to it. However, when anyone threw insults at Akamaru, Kiba's mind went a little crazy. No one insulted his dog and got away with it.

"Fine with me, though you may want to change out of your 'jammies' first. I'll be waiting." Sasuke turned and left.

Without a moment to lose, Kiba jerked off his pajamas, forgetting Hinata was in the room. She stared at his naked body for a second before covering her eyes, her face so red it looked like it might explode. Kiba didn't notice, just jerked on the first clothes he found. They were his mission clothes, and they stunk so much his eyes watered, but he was too angry to care. Once dressed, he rushed outside to meet Sasuke.

Outside, Kiba and Akamaru stood facing the Uchiha. Sasuke had his hands in his pockets. He was angry and looking forward to the sparring with Kiba.

Akamaru attacked Sasuke. The dog had grown, and his huge body moved fast. Sasuke dodged, and dodged again, but the attacks kept coming. He became so focused on Akamaru that he didn't notice Kiba moving to flank him. It wasn't until Sasuke turned and saw Kiba that he realized his guard was down. Kiba punched Sasuke in the face, sending the boy flying.

"You used chakra in your hand, Kiba! What the fuck is wrong with you?" The blow had surprised Sasuke. He knew Kiba was angry at him, but they were fellow shinobi. He thought they were just sparring, but the chakra punch was serious—Kiba was fighting.

"You take back what you said about Aka and me. To even imply we would do something…so awful…and you insulted my entire clan."

"Take back calling me perverted, then, asshole."

"I won't apologize! And it isn't fair, Sasuke, you insulting my clan—you don't even have a family I can insult!"

Sasuke's face was blank, but inside he went cold. He had been joking when he said the comment about the Inuzuka's, but he couldn't believe Kiba would bring up the Uchiha clan. The subject was taboo in Konoha for a reason, and the memories caused by Kiba's insult caused Sasuke to burn with pain and anger.

"How dare you bring up my family."

"Why, are you going to use it as a pity card? Should I go easy on you? God forbid I accidentally hurt the last 'special' Uchiha!"

It was too much. Disregarding the people around them that had come to watch the fight, Sasuke began to collect chakra at the bottoms of his feet. He used the energy, pulling it up and filling his hand with it. A chirping sound filled the air, like hundreds of birds. Sasuke was making the chidori.

Kiba's eyes went wide with fear. He had only seen chidori once, in the chuunin exam, but he knew that it could, and probably would, kill him. Instantly he wished he could take it all back, everything. He should have just thanked Sasuke for getting him home and being kind enough to clean him up. It was just the surprise and shame of finding out that the great Sasuke had helped him like he was an infant caught him off guard. Kiba had to think fast, or his life was about to end over a real stupid argument. Quickly, he reached in his pocket, just as Sasuke began to charge him.

Sasuke ran at Kiba, his eyes focused on the other boy's heart. He was almost there when an explosion went off, sending him flying backwards, the chidori still in his hand. He landed hard, so hard he could no longer control the chakra in his hand, and it exploded as well. A large, sweeping sphere of energy boomed out.

And then it was quiet.

When he woke up, Sasuke panicked. The impact of Kiba's exploding tag and his own chakra had demolished two nearby buildings. More importantly, Kiba could hear the groans of villagers as they too, woke up, recovering from the impact. Some of the groans were full of pain, and Sasuke knew citizens had been injured. He looked quickly around and realized Kiba and Akamaru had vanished.

Sasuke got up and began to run to the Hokage as members of ANBU began to show up to investigate.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

A/N: Because I changed everything about chapter 2, I just reworked this and filled in where the old story was—if you read anything from the old story, or it doesn't make sense to you, please let me know!

Sasuke was running hard. He wasn't sure what he was going to tell the Hokage, and he was very scared of her reaction (the woman was so strong!) but he knew he had to speak to her.

The events of the morning were replaying in his head: why exactly had he gone over to Kiba's apartment anyway? It had been to make sure the boy was ok. He had been sleeping for almost three days, and when no one had heard from him, Sasuke just wanted to make sure Kiba was not dead. Instead of being able to check in on him, Kiba had to start shit. It was early in the morning and already there was a bone to pick.

Not that it hurt Sasuke's feelings, of course, but why was Kiba so ungrateful! After all, if he knew about what Sasuke had to go through—like the smell (oh god, the smell…) and the bath. The bath had made Sasuke very uncomfortable, but he couldn't put Kiba into his bed smelling like that. It would have been too cruel, and Sasuke's inner aristocrat scoffed at the thought of dirty sheets. Kiba had figured out that Sasuke had bathed him and it made Sasuke cringe a little on the inside. The dog boy was probably thinking untrue perverted things about Sasuke right now! But that hadn't been the way it went.

On the way to Kiba's house, Sasuke had runwith all the chakra he could. The smell of dog and sweat and who knows how many weeks of grime had almost been enough to make him pass out cold right alongside Kiba. How could Inuzuka live with himself, smelling like that? He had finally arrived, but stumbled with finding the correct key to Kiba's apartment. Each minute with that stench was a minute too many. It had been Sasuke's first intention just to drop Kiba and run home for his own shower, fearing a bit of the smell had rubbed off on him. However, he knew somewhere inside him that cruel, so he had gone into the bathroom, run a tub of water, picked up Kiba and dropped the boy, clothes and all, into the water.

The water had immediately turned a dark brown and Sasuke had known that he had no easy way out. He remembered pulling the soaking boy, who had felt twenty times heavier with the water, out. Sasuke's cheeks began to burn as he remembered what happened next.

He had sat down beside Kiba and, resigning himself by stating it was his duty to a fellow shinobi, began to undress him. Off came the vest, the leg holster, the jacket, the shirt, the shoes and the pants. When it came to the boxers, Sasuke had paused, not knowing if this was crossing some line. But, cool and collected, he had decided that he was a boy and Kiba didn't have anything he had not seen before. There were plenty of times Sasuke had seen Naruto naked before, like on missions when there was a common shower room or in the hot springs when Jiraiya peeked. Taking off the boxers, he had opened a window and hung the clothes to dry. The clothes still stunk, but Sasuke had felt he was already going above and beyond the call of duty.

Going back to the bathroom, he had picked up the nude Kiba and slowly lowered the boy into a fresh tub of water. This time, the water stayed reasonably clean. Not having done washed another person before, he had started with the hair, filling his hands with shampoo and slowly working it into the tangled mess that was Kiba's hair. His fingers had gotten stuck, so he rinsed all the shampoo out and grabbed a nearby comb. It had taken Sasuke over half an hour to comb out Kiba's hair, but it had become almost a mission in his mind. Thinking about it like that had made the entire bathing process easier. When the hair had finally been combed out (with clumps of it everywhere-- disgusting), Sasuke had begun to sponge off Kiba's body.

Sasuke knew at this point of remembering that day that his cheeks must be burning bright red. Mission for a fellow shinobi or not, remembering the actual sponging off of Kiba's body, of Kiba's entire body, made him feel wrong and perverted. Especially when, at one point, Kiba became…aroused in his sleep. Sasuke had been sponging off down there when Kiba's cock had begun to grow hard. At first Sasuke jerked away his hand, but he didn't stop looking. Sasuke remembered this part well because he had been impressed and even a little…intimidated by the size of Kiba's penis. While staring it at, Sasuke had reached his own hand down his pants, touching himself. He wasn't perverted! He just wanted to…to compare. But when Sasuke had also started to get aroused, he had stopped touching himself and had finished washing Kiba quickly, getting the boy in bed and working to not think about what had happened in the bathtub. When he had left, Sasuke had forgotten (or so he had told himself) all about the incident and instead was proud of himself for being so helpful.

This helped bring Sasuke back to his original line of thinking—ingratitude. Kiba should be fucking thankful for all he did, for he had gone out of his way to help Kiba when the boy had been down. Though it had only been Sasuke's intention to rile up Kiba because he was bored, when he had seen the state of the other boy's mental exhaustion, he had put up his dislike forKiba to help out a fellow ninja. And instead of getting thanked, the Inuzuka had to bring up his clan. His dead clan.

Sasuke was so absorbed in his thinking thoughts and anger that he failed to notice a piece of the fence moving along with him at his fast speed. Only when the piece of fence tripped on a rock and start flailing did Sasuke realize he had been followed. A loud bang! happened and in the dust a head with blonde hair peeked out.

"Naruto! Why are you following me?"

The noisy ninja laughed. "I was in the ramen shop eating and I saw you run by, blushing! I thought maybe you finally had an encounter with a_ lady_ (at this point Naruto winked repeatedly as if something was caught in his eye) and I wanted to see if you were heading to her! I wanna know who finally has Sasuke embarrassed! HAHA!"

"_Baka_, there is no girl, and I was not blushing. Now, if you don't mind, I have important business with the Hokage." With this, Sasuke turned and began to walk away. But Naruto was equally as stubborn as he was noisy, and he was not about to let this one slide. It was so rare one saw Sasuke distraught, and Naruto needed to know the source! He began to fall in stride with his teammate.

"No, you were definitely blushing. So who could it be…Ino? I never thought you would hook up with Ino, she is so…whiny? Or maybe Sakura! It had better not be Sakura, even though she stopped openly pining for you a year ago, if you screw with her, you'll screw with our team and then I will have to kick your ass. Not to mention, Sasuke, I hate to break it to you but we both know Sakura is secretly in love with me, and I don't want you hurt when she shoots you down! So who else could it be…" Naruto continued on, talking to himself, while Sasuke looked for ways to escape.

"…Tsunade for?"

"What?" Sasuke asked.

"What do you need to see Granny Tsunade for?

"Kiba and I were fighting and it got a little out of control."

Naruto's face scrunched in confusion, his 'whiskers' pulling close together. He was trying to put together Kiba, Akamaru and whatever girl had made Sasuke blush. What was Sauke even talking about?

"Were you fighting with Kiba over a girl?"

"Mind your own business, baka."

After Naruto had braved Orochimaru to save Sasuke, and Sasuke had finally begun to learn how much his teammate cared for and respected him, Naruto had been able to, on special occasions, tell Sasuke when he was being stupid and have Sasuke actually listen. Naruto hoped now was one of those special times. He grabbed Sasuke by the shoulders and whipped him around.

"Sasuke, listen to me. I haven't been a good friend to you in the past months. I know you have been stuck in Konoha. I know you don't feel like you are trusted by anyone, and to be honest, you aren't trusted by most people. I know you have probably been bored with being trapped hereand you'refrustrated because you aren't out looking for your brother (Sasuke's face turned to stone) but…if you are fighting with fellow shinobi, you will get kicked out of Konoha. Because of your past, there is no tolerance for you to mess up. Don't be a fucking idiot."

Naruto tooka deep breath. He talked a lot, and he talked all the time, but it took a lot out of him to confront Sasuke, especially about Sasuke doing something stupid. Sasuke knew Naruto was right and Naruto could see he was right in the other boy's eyes, but the look on Sasuke's face was the stubborn one and Naruto knew Sasuke wouldn't change his mind.

"Fine, go talk to Granny. But if you get kicked out and I have to join a new team, I will hunt you down and kick your ass!"

Naruto dashed off and Sasuke was left with too many thoughts and conversations flowing through his head. Of course Naruto was right, and he knew it, but it was a little too late. People were already hurt and Sasuke needed to confront the consequences of his actions.

The loud pounding on her office door so early in the morning had been an unpleasant surprise for Tsunade. When she had finally answered, she found an out of breath Kiba dressed in what looked like (and smelled like) his mission clothing with Akamaru by his side. But instead of stating his purpose, the boy froze in fear, staring at her. He obviously needed to tell her something but just wasn't ready yet. Since it was early and Tsunade was not ready for whatever had Kiba so stirred up, she left him outside her door, closing it in his face. He would knock again when he was ready.

Then again, after returning to her office she realized his coming was probably for the best. Kurenai had made some interesting remarks regarding Kiba's ego and "misunderstanding" of what it meant to be part of a team. Tsunade knew Kiba had a hard time competing for attention against the other boys of the village. With Shikamaru being so smart, and Sasuke being so incredibly talented, and Naruto being so, well… Naruto, Kiba's own talents were often overlooked. However, that was no excuse for forgetting that teamwork relied on everyone within the group, not just a leader or an individual. There were so many things the chuunin still had to learn.

Loud voices interrupted the Hokage's thoughts. Two young men were arguing outside of her door, their voices raised in anger, and there was a dog barking. She got up and walked to the door. Though she couldn't understand what was being said, she recognized the voices—Kiba, Akamaru and Sasuke. It didn't take much to realize that this was why Kiba had shown up disheveled at her door. Damn. Tsunade sighed as she opened the door.

"There was a misunderstanding." Sasuke stated in his calm, typical way, even though she had just heard him yelling through her door.

"You insulted my whole family!" Kiba yelled.

"You attacked me with chakra, instead of normal sparring!"

"YOU USED CHIDORI AGAINST ME!"

"**ENOUGH**!" Tsunade's voice boomed over the other two as her fist slammed into her door. Unfortunately, she slammed it too hard and shattered it into tiny wood fragments that fell to everyone's feet. Though she was distressed about the need to get yet another door (she really did need to keep a check on her strength…) the Hokage was at least glad to have gotten their attention. Akamaru whimpered.

"Would you two please step into my office? Kiba, your pet needs to remain outside." Kiba did not look pleased, but he stuttered the command for the dog to stay.

Kiba and Sasuke looked at each other in mutual fright, and it seemed to be the first thing they were agreeing on. Either way, there was no turning back and so they shyly stepped into her office, being wise and keeping their eyes on the floor. Tsunade waited until she was sitting behind her desk before she calmly asked, "Now Sasuke, what is this all about?"

Now that he was standing in front of her, Sasuke felt awkward and very, very stupid, two emotions he was not used to. Every way he had thought of to explain the fight had sounded childish, and it was his last desire to come off as immature in front of the Hokage. After all, he wanted nothing more than to gain her trust so that she would actually let him start doing real missions. Still, seeing her eyeing him let him know he needed to say something, and soon. Keeping his face in his typical cool, stoic way he managed to talk.

"As I am sure you know, a couple of days ago Kiba's team returned home from mission. Kiba was stumbling around and I watched him to make sure he was not hurt. Kiba passed out cold on the road, so I carried him to his house. This morning, when I showed up to see how he was doing, he picked a fight with me. When we were outside, he attacked me. And he set off an explosive tag in the village. I was forced to use chidori to defend myself. It got out of control and I think a few villagers may have been hurt." Sasuke shoved his hands in his pockets, looking controlled.

Tsunade's eyes grew wide with anger and disbelief.

Kiba's exterior did not mimic Sasuke's—his body was rigid and his face red. Even Tsunade could hear him grinding his teeth together and she noticed his hands were bleeding, clenched so hard his claws had dug into his palms.

"Sasuke, let me get this straight. You and Kiba had a fight and innocent bystanders 'may' have been hurt?"

"Hn."

**BANG**! Again, Tsunade slammed her fists, this time into the desk. She watched her strength so the desk did not break, but the noise let the two boys know they were in deep shit.

"This… this is unacceptable behavior for two of leaf's chuunin. As ninja's of this village, you have an obligation to set a good example of behavior for the villagers and younger ninjas. You should be able to handle your disagreements in a mature manor. Fighting is not mature and had you two just been fighting, I might have stuck you with some community service or something. But. You both crossed a serious line when you put citizens of Konoha at risk with your fighting. I am telling you now that if anyone died, you are both exiled. However, I think I would have heard about it by now, so we are going to assume there are just minor injuries. Still, Kiba, for you to use explosives in the village—you are too smart for that and I still don't understand what you were thinking. I am going to assume you were thinking fast because, and this leads me to my second point, Sasuke should not have been using Chidori against a fellow shinobi. Ever. That is not a defensive move, Sasuke, and I don't care what drove you to use it, but if I ever hear about you using it against another Leaf, so help me, I will hurt you. "

Tsunade stopped for a moment and took a deep breath. Kiba and Sasuke both looked thoroughly ashamed. Still, she did not think it was enough to just admonish them. Something more needed to be done, something drastic to take them both down a few notches.

"As of now, you are both demoted from chuunin. You now carry the title of genin. The boys looked like they wanted to protest, but she held her hand up to silence them. Don't argue with me, or I will stick you back in the academy and you can sit with Iruka throughout his classes. Because you are now genin, you will accompany the chuunin Naruto this made them grimace and Sakura to the Village of Mist and help them complete a mission I will give to them. You are their subordinates and only when they deem you ready will I re-promote you to chuunin.

" I am finished and you may leave. Report tomorrow to the front gate at 8 in the morning, ready to be on the road for several months."

There was no room to argue as the Hokage's face made it plain as day they were to exit immediately or face a level of wrath neither boy could comprehend, so they turned and exited as quickly as possible.

Outside, the young men sat beside each other on a step, their faces contorted with confusion. Akamaru was curled at Kiba's feet.

"Sasuke, you used chidori against me. It is a ninjitsus meant to kill in one shot…why?"

"You shouldn't have brought up my family."

"Is it a double standard, then? You, so high and mighty, can say whatever you wish, make whoever you wish look like a fool, but if anyone retaliates, you KILL THEM?"

"You could never understand, baka." Sasuke got up and began to walk away.

But not before he heard Kiba whisper, "I can't understand what monster would kill a fellow ninja."


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

A/N: Same thing as before, if you catch and big mistakes or things that don't flow, let me know. Thanks for all your patience!

In a secluded orchard, Sasuke trained. He ran, he jumped, he threw shuriken and kunai, hitting his mark each time. His body hurt from the brutal physical training but he wouldn't allow himself to take a break, even though he knew he had a long mission the next day.

Not for the first time, Sasuke was furious at himself. Why _had_ he started that stupid fight with Kiba? Why had he let the other boy get to him so much? Why had he let his pride get in the way? Why was he not doing hard missions? Why had he not achieved Itachi's level of Sharingan and skill? For that matter, why was he not killed Itachi yet? The more he questioned himself, the angrier Sasuke got, and the angrier he was, the more he pushed his body. The rage built and built in him until he couldn't even see what he was doing. Couldn't see, that is, until he was suddenly knocked flat on his back, hard.

A familiar face and blond hair appeared in his view, looking down on him as he caught his breath.

"Naruto."

"Sasuke, for working out so hard, you sure are a shitty ninja. I even waved at you before I hit you. I was calling you name. How in the hell did you not see me?"

Naruto squatted, moving his face right in front of Sasuke's.

"Baka." Sasuke pushed Naruto out of the way and sat up, drawing up his knees and crossing his arms over them. His shoulders slumped.

"So, Sasuke… about you being my subordinate…" Naruto's voice sounded surprisingly compassionate. Sasuke managed a small smile. After all the grief he had given Naruto over the years, it touched him that Naruto was willing to be so adult about such an absolutely mortifying situation. He looked at Naruto, hopeful.

"…About you being my subordinate… YOU HAVE TO DO EVERYTHING I SAY, SUCKER! How in the hell did you, you of all people get demoted to genin? AHAHAHA! This is the best day of my life! I had only dreamed about this day, never thinking it could come true, and yet here it is and I am superior and…" Naruto probably would have continued had Sasuke not hit him hard enough on the skull to knock Naruto facedown in the dirt.

He thought that was the end of it. Normally a warning bash like that from Sasuke was enough to put the blond ninja in his place. However, Naruto looked at Sasuke with his dirty face, huge smile beaming and said, "It is not a very smart idea to hit your superior, Sasuke. Especially if your superior is the one who decides when you become a chuunin again." At this, Naruto collapsed on the ground, holding his sides as he let out a fit of laughter and glee.

Disbelief spread over Sasuke's normally stoic face. Oh God, he thought. He never could have imagined his life getting any worse, but somehow, it had. He sighed and began to prepare himself for three months of absolute hell.

Shino watched his teammate's shoulders shake with anger and tears as Kiba cried. It wasn't that Shino was not sympathetic—he was as full of pity and surprise as he could possibly be. It was just that Kiba never asked him for help, and yet that morning he had shown up at Shino's door looking crazed and hurt. After Shino heard the news, he could understand Kiba's anger and disbelief. Even he was having a hard time wrapping his mind around the Hokage actually demoting someone as talented as Kiba. What was more, he could find absolutely no motive for Sasuke to have acted the way he had. From what Kiba had said, Sasuke had overstepped the average fighting bounds. Hell, Sasuke had overstepped the bounds of being human. The only positive was at least the Uchiha was in trouble, too. Not that it comforted Kiba much.

"I am going to kill him." Kiba's clawed hands clenched and unclenched. "There is no way in hell I am going to be on a team with that spiteful asshole."

Shino just sat and listened. It was a little weird for him to see Kiba cry. Kiba had recently turned twenty, making it at least six years since Shino could remember the boy breaking down like this. Back then, it had been because Akamaru had almost died and Kiba had blamed himself.

Akamaru was by Kiba's side, trying to snuggle up to his master. Eventually, Kiba began to loosen up and slipped his arms around the dog's neck. Aka's pink tongue sneaked out and licked the tears off his master's face. The sensation made Kiba smile, then giggle and finally push Aka away playfully.

"Aka, that tickles!" Kiba began to shove Aka more, who in turn shoved back, and in no time the boy and his dog were wrestling and sparring in their own weird way on the ground. Laughs and barks were plentiful and Shino's eyes widened in amazement at how fast his teammate's mood had recovered, returning him to the energetic and loud teammate he trained with. He took it as a good sign and knew Kiba would be a chuunin again in no time, if he could just tough it through the next mission.

Of course, with Naruto having seniority would make it incredibly hard for his arrogant teammate to keep a lid on his temper…

Sakura was, as usual, the first person to arrive at the front gate. After becoming a medic ninja, her ability to wake herself up refreshed and ready to go had improved—constant chakra practice helped with things like that. This time, however, she was the first because she was an hour early, and she was an hour early because she had been unable to sleep the night before. When Tsunade had given her the mission, and the details of its "special" situation, she couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Special" really meant that Sasuke, her good friend, was now demoted to genin along with Kiba. Her heart ached for Sasuke all night, her mind turning over the limited details Tsunade had told her, and sleep never came.

Now she was here, an hour early, and still unable to give her thoughts a rest. She remembered how, when Sasuke had returned from Orochimaru, she and he had become closer. Sakura smiled as she remembered how ecstatic she had been when Sasuke had let her become close to him. They had walked for hours, her talking and him listening, spending their days in each other's company. Of course, she had really wished that Sasuke had been doing the talking, had let her into his inner most thoughts, but eventually she had learned to accept that he was simply not that type of guy. He did, however, kiss her once, next to the Memorial monument. They had gone to look at the names of the ninja who were honored after being KIA. It had been raining a little and Sakura's bangs kept sliding into her eyes. After an hour of standing silently, she had turned to leave when Sasuke grabbed her gently by the shoulders, making her face him. He had gazed into her eyes, his dark black eyes piercing hers, causing her to shiver. For the only time in their entire relationship, past and future, she felt as if she truly understood him. Sasuke had raised a hand to her face; his fingers gently pushed the bangs out of her eyes, then ran down her jaw and lastly moved into her hair. He pulled her in and kissed her, long and steady. At the time Sakura had been so overwhelmed with excitement she had almost fainted in his arms. When he had kissed her, it had seemed perfect, everything about it, the rain, his eyes, and his touch…oh god, his touch. But now that she was older, Sakura could analyze that one kiss and know that she and Sasuke weren't meant to be. There was no real passion in the kiss, but more of a silent pleading or desperation, a loneliness in Sasuke that Sakura would never be able to fulfill.

Remembering that kiss made Sakura's stomach twist and turn with sadness and empathy. She knew, once as a potential girlfriend of Sasuke's and now as his good friend, how lonely he was. Though she chided him for alienating himself, for picking fights with the other ninja and constantly criticizing their skills, for being so aloof from everyone, she knew he didn't really mean any of it. It was just that Sasuke's life had been filled with trauma and grief since a young age and no other ninja seemed to be able to understand him, to share the same level of pain. So instead of making friends or moving on, Sasuke still pushed everyone away and absorbed himself in his sorrow

And now, as if Sasuke had not suffered enough, he was demoted to genin, something almost unheard of and what was, Sakura was sure, the ultimate slap in the face to the Uchiha. For someone so talented and proud as Sasuke, being demoted was most likely the most mortifying thing that could happen, and Sakura wasn't sure how he would handle it. Or even how she would handle it, with him now being her subordinate. It was almost enough to make her laugh, that the boy who had saved her life more times that she could remember, was now under her charge. She would have laughed if she weren't so afraid of what that would mean for the group, and more importantly, her relationship with Sasuke.

Though she had been unable to sleep, Sakura had at least made the early morning hour fly by, because before she knew it the rest of the team approached.

Naruto was rubbing the sleep out of his eyes while Sasuke came slinking up, hands in pockets. Not too far behind him were Kiba and Akamaru, looking very chipper for such an early hour. Sakura was glad for his energy, though, because she and the other two looked like they could use a boost.

"I'm glad you all made it on time," she began. The previous night she had demanded Naruto allow her to be team captain. Who knows what that insensitive baka would have Sasuke and Naruto doing if he was in charge!

"Our mission is pretty simple, but it will be a long one."

Kiba groaned. His last mission had been "simple" and it had lasted a long time, and it had left him almost useless by the end of it. In fact, it had take Sasuke's help to even get him home. Kiba growled at the reminder of Sasuke.

"We will be going to the Hidden Village of Mist and spying. We won't be going undercover or anything, just setting up a post near two main roadways and monitoring the people coming in and out of the village. Apparently some strange people have been sneaking in and the Kage asked for our help, since no one would recognize us. The time period could last anywhere from a week, if we see what is unusual, or up to three months, if things remain calm. At the end of the mission we will report our findings and come home. Easy."

"OK then! Let's get going!" Kiba was ready to begin this mission: the sooner it began, the sooner it would be over and the sooner he could be a chuunin again.

"Hold on Kiba, there is one more thing we need to, uh, discuss." Sakura was very uncomfortable about this part. Both boys were older than her and much better ninjas, so it made her feel wrong about being their superior.

"About your, uh, situation. Naruto and I know all of the important details, and are sympathetic to you both. He and I agreed that, because this is such a simple mission, there is very little you need to do to earn our approval for, you know…becoming chuunin again." She could see Sasuke look away as his face got red, and Kiba looked uncomfortable. "All you need to do is listen to Naruto and I when we ask you to do something, and, uh, that's it. Easy, right?"

"Hn." Both boys quietly agreed, and things seemed to be going ok. That is, until Naruto had to open his mouth.

"THAT'S RIGHT! YOU TWO HAVE TO DO _EVERYTHING_ I ASK YOU TO OR ELSE!" Naruto collapsed in a fit of laughter.

Kiba and Sasuke looked at each other with grimaces on their faces. They may not like each other but they both knewthatNaruto was going to make it a long three months. Not knowing what to say, they both began walking out with Sakura and Akamaru, leaving Naruto laughing on the road.

"WAIT! I DIDN'T TELL YOU TO LEAVE WITHOUT ME!"

All three team members looked back at the noisy ninja, only to see him holding a small pad and a pencil, writing.

"Ok, so starting without their SUPERIOR Naruto punctuated each syllable of the word, that is one demerit for Kiba and one demerit for Sasuke." Naruto's tongue stuck out of his mouth a little as he concentrated on writing. When he finished, he looked up, thoroughly pleased with himself.

"Baka," muttered Kiba and Sasuke in unison. They looked at each other, and Kiba thought he could almost see a smirk on Sasuke's face, until each boy realized who the other was. Their faces changed instantly from amused to angry, and they glared at each other. Sakura imagined she could see lightening racing from their eyes. Ugh. It really was going to be a long three months.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto (sadface).

It had taken several days to arrive at the Hidden Village of Mist. Normal protocol required ninja to sign in with their client upon arrival, but since this mission relied on stealth, the five teammates remained outside of the gates. They were deciding the best way to split up. Naruto was pushing to be put with Sasuke. Oh, the things he had planned for the Uchiha! Sakura, however, could see the evil gleam in the blond boy's eye and was not letting up.

"Naruto, don't be stupid. Sasuke and I will take the north entrance while you, Kiba and Akamaru watch the south entrance. It just makes sense, because Sasuke can use his Sharingan to notice anything strange here while I help him replenish his chakra, and you can use Kiba's hearing and smell to track on the smaller entrance!"

Not only could Naruto not argue, but Sasuke seemed to be all for this plan as well. Kiba, on the other hand, did not look pleased about being stuck with Konoha's number one noisy ninja. With his sensitive hearing, Naruto's loud voice often gave him a headache, and Akamaru always complained that the boy had a strange smell to him.

"Ok, it is settled then. Sasuke and I set up here while you two move around to the other side. It is still a day's walk at least. Oh, and don't forget to use your headsets, OK? We need to be in constant contact, so one of you needs to charge his while the other listens on his own. That way one is constantly in use and they never lose power. Naruto, Kiba, Akamaru-- get going!"

Naruto and Kiba began to walk off, Akamaru running ahead. Both were disappointed, but for completely different reasons. Naruto had planned so many things for Sasuke to do, and now he would just have to make Kiba do them. It could be fun, he guessed, just not as much as watching that egotistical jerk Sasuke answer to his every whim. Dog boy had better not get an attitude or open that big mouth of his, or Naruto would make him sorry.

Kiba was so angry. Everything was going wrong in every possible way. First, he was separated from his team. Shino and Hinata knew him, and they worked so well together, and now they weren't here to help him. Second, he was a genin, and it was all Sasuke's fault. And now, as if he hadn't been through enough, he was forced to work alone with that baka, Naruto, while Sasuke and Sakura were probably getting it on in the woods. Kiba had no real proof that Sakura and Sasuke were fucking, in fact, she had stopped seeming interested in the Uchiha, but that didn't matter—Kiba just knew that if his luck was this bad, then Sasuke would get his chuunin title back just for having sex with Sakura. What an asshole.

A month had gone by with nothing exciting to note as far as the mission went. What there was to note was Kiba's growing frustration and desperation for the mission to be over. He and Akamaru were so tired of Naruto and his whims that Kiba was beginning to wonder exactly how much trouble he would get in if he fought the other boy. He knew it would mean not getting his chuunin title back, of course, but if that was all, then attacking Naruto almost seemed worth it.

It had started with little things, like Naruto making Kiba cook all the food. Then Kiba was forced to keep everything neat, which was difficult because Naruto was such a slob. He had to make Akamaru sleep outside the tent because "the dog's smell" bothered the blond ninja. Though Aka understood, Kiba got the feeling that the dog held some resentment against his master. In fact, he and Aka had their first fight, and it had been vicious. It was raining but Naruto required firewood, even though they couldn't start a fire in all the wetness. It was just a way to make Kiba cold and wet. Kiba and Aka had been trudging through shrubbery when Kiba had slipped, accidentally hitting Aka on his way down. The normally compassionate dog had actually _snapped_ at Kiba! Aka had never done that sort of thing before, and when Kiba had called him on it, the dog actually began to bark that the whole mission was Kiba's fault for talking back to Sasuke. Defensive, Kiba had pointed out that if Aka hadn't attacked Sasuke, none of this would have happened. Aka called Kiba weak, and had pointed out thatKiba was the one who had passed out, requiring Sasuke's help. The words had kept escalating and eventually blows were thrown.

When Kiba and Aka had actually made it back to the campsite, they were bloody, sore, wet, cold and bitter. And they had forgotten firewood, which caused Naruto to pull out that damned notebook of his and give them "demerits."

The notebook. Every time Kiba did something wrong, which really just meant that every time Kiba didn't do everything Naruto said, the notebook came out and Naruto would write something down, letting Kiba know he was heading into permanent "genin-ville, population: Kiba." Fortunately, the blond ninja did it for Sasuke as well. Several times Naruto had needed to run to the other camp, either to pick up supplies or write up a report with Sakura. Each time Naruto returned, stormy look on his face, muttering comments about the Uchiha's attitude and "hundreds of demerits." Those were Kiba's favorite days, if he could have favorites with all the misery he was in.

"Baka, I am tired, get your dog to catch us some food." Naruto's voice was irritating and condescending. Kiba knew Naruto wasn't tired—they had spent the entire day as still as possible, listening and watching the road. It was the same as everyday, and by the end of it both boys, who were naturally energetic, were so full of pent-up steam that Kiba usually needed to go run laps in the forest with Aka. Naruto just went back to camp and sat around, waiting for Kiba to cook dinner. Naruto, in all his power-glory, was forgetting to train, and Kiba took a small bit of pleasure in the fact that the other boy's orange jumpsuit was fitting a little more snug around the middle.

"We have food here, I will fix it." Kiba wanted to add, "and later, would you like me to wipe your ass for you after your nightly shit," but he didn't because he was afraid Naruto might actually make him do it. It disgusted Kiba that he had spent enough time with the other boy that he knew Naruto's shit schedule. Life couldn't get much lower.

The weeks were flying by for Sasuke. He and Sakura had settled into a quiet routine of waking, watching the road in shifts, eating and sleeping. He would watch during the busy parts of the day, and when he had exhausted his Sharingan looking for strange chakras, Sakura would use her medic skills to infuse his body with her own cool chakra, replenishing him. He liked those times in the day, when he could close his eyes and feel her energy running through him. He knew it was calming for her as well.

Sasuke was glad that Sakura had not let his kiss or their failed relationship mess up their friendship all those years ago. He had known she was in love with them since the academy and when he had finally returned to Konoha after his ordeal with Orochimaru, he had needed someone to be near. Sasuke knew he had used Sakura for his own emotional needs, and eventually the guilt had caused him to kiss her—he had felt like he needed to pay her back. But the kiss was lackluster for him, and she knew he wasn't really into it. Any other girl would have taken the heartache and used it to hate him, but Sakura had just accepted that, even then, he couldn't return her feelings of love. Since then, the two of them were friends, just friends, and it was enough for both of them.

Sakura's friendship didn't change the loneliness that Sasuke felt all them time, and the frustration that loneliness caused. He had watched for years as everyone dated, hooked up and broke-up, envious of the companionship his fellow ninjas were finding. Even Kiba, for a while, had dated several pretty girls that Sasuke knew had, at one point, had a crush on him before Kiba. Then again, Kiba had recently stopped dating,but Sasuke just assumed it was to train. Still, Sasuke was jealous of the relationships and intimacies that Kiba had shared with the girls while Sasuke hadn't.

For all his life, Sasuke had strived to be great at everything he did. With a prodigy brother like Itachi, it hadn't been easy. Itachi had always been number one, had excelled at everything. When Itachi murdered the entire Uchiha clan, Sasuke had felt he needed to be better than Itachi, be the very best, at everything he did so that one day he could kill his brother.

Relationships, however, seemed to be the one area Sasuke was far behind everyone else. It wasn't as if he hadn't tried, because he had. With so many of the village girls in love with him, it wasn't hard to find one to date. The girl had moved fast and, before he had known it, they were in her bedroom. It was his first time, sure, but he had thought he knew what he was doing after listening to Shikamaru and Naruto trade stories. However, when he finished, not only did he not feel remotely satisfied, but he could tell by the look of struggling disbelief that the girl was very, _very_ unsatisfied at well. The embarrassment at not only not being good, but being bad at sex, something supposed to be natural for everyone, had shamed Sasuke so much that he had been unable to perform in the bedroom after. There was a rumor that he had slept with tons of girls and left them crying in the morning. Well, he had tried to sleep with some, and when he couldn't get aroused he left them in tears—and unsatisfied. So Sasuke had given up on dating. This made for life full of solitude in the village.

It was that solitude that made him even more grateful for Sakura's friendship. Out here with her now, he felt almost happy, though something was missing and he wasn't sure what it was. Well, that and the fact that every now and then Naruto showed up. Naruto would waltz into camp, noisy and rude despite the fact that the camp needed to remain secret, demanding absurd things from Sasuke. Once, he had even asked Sasuke to rub his feet, going so far as to take off his sandals and plop his smelly feet on Sasuke's lap!

Fortunately, Sakura had shown up and beat up Naruto for Sasuke. Naruto had stormed back to his camp, muttering something about "demerits."

Aside from that baka Naruto, with the way things were going, Sasuke knew this mission would be over, he would be a chuunin again and all of this would become a bad dream.


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

Naruto finally allowed Kiba to go to the other campsite to pick up the supplies, though there was a tricky gleam in the blonde boy's eye that let Kiba know he was planning something awful. Hell, Naruto was always planning something awful, so Kiba went anyway, happy for the space and a chance to move around. He and Akamaru set out early and took their time walking to where Sasuke and Sakura were set up.

Kiba was still bitter about the entire Sasuke incident, but the weeks with Naruto had worn him down and Kiba was almost looking forward to seeing the Uchiha, if simply for a change in irritations. Though he still couldn't figure out why Sasuke had been so cruel and taken the fight so far, Kiba realized that in order for the mission to end quickly, he would need to try and forgive Sasuke--- at least a little. After all, the boy _had _carried him home, and had gone the extra mile to clean Kiba off and get him in bed. The whole bathing and cleaning thing still made Kiba feel a little weird, but he decided to give Sasuke some respect—it was a sign of the Uchiha's maturity that he had not been intimidated by Kiba's naked body. Kiba remembered how nice it had been as a child to have his mother or sister bathe him. He could vividly recall the relaxing feeling of someone squeezing warm, soapy water down his back, or feeling their fingers massage the shampoo into his hair and scalp. Kiba wondered if, had he been awake while Sasuke was bathing him, it would have felt as soothing. He also wondered if, had the situation been reversed, he would have been able to bathe Sasuke. To take off his clothes… One piece at a time… Until Sasuke was…naked. Kiba began to wonderwhat Sasuke's body would look like naked, and found himself blushing.

That is when Akamaru barked and Kiba stopped just short of walking into a tree. He had been so engrossed in naked images of Sasuke that he had stopped paying attention to his surroundings. Aka was barking something that sounded and awful lot like, "you deserve to be a genin if you can't even see where you are going," but Kiba was shook up over how much energy he had been spending on thinking about Sasuke. A naked Sasuke. And that just made him feel weird, because why in the hell would he be thinking about that?

The whole situation was making Kiba embarrassed and uncomfortable, so he challenged Akamaru to a race: First on to sneak into the camp undetected was the winner! They split directions and Kiba was thankful for a new task to devote his thoughts and energy to. Who knew where his previous train of thought would lead?

Kiba was far enough away that, even with his superb hearing and smelling, he could no longer tell where Akamaru was. This was good, because that meant he was hidden from Aka as well. Kiba crept along, silently jumping across tree branches, using his chakra to keep his balance and to keep quiet. Occasionally he would hide behind a trunk, or jump down and crawl under some bushes, butthere was no sign of Akamaru.

When they had parted, Aka had made to take the long way around. That dog was so arrogant—he probably thought that even with taking the long road around he would still beat Kiba. But the boy thought he could make it, and was probably even ahead, so he took a minute to just sit on a branch. He had been sitting on branches for weeks now, but this was the first time during the mission he was sitting _alone. _Breathing in the air and closing his eyes, Kiba just listened. It seemed like he was just now hearing the wind in the leaves and the pitter-patter of a squirrel's feet somewhere behind him. He focused on listening so much that eventually he could hear his own heart beating in his chest. It was reassuring, to hear and feel his heart beat, to be so aware of being alive. After he had almost died chasing after Sasuke all those years ago, Kiba taught himself to do this. When he had been sitting, leaning against a tree and hiding from his enemy, bleeding from the wound where he had stabbed himself, he had listened to his heart slowly beat his life-giving blood out of him. After that, when he listened to his heart beat, it was like his body's mantra, telling him over and over again that he was alive, alive, alive.

Feeling calm and reinvigorated, Kiba smiled and jumped up. After all, he was good, but he knew Aka was fast and he wanted to beat his dog!

The campsite looked quiet. Slowly, Kiba crept along, smelling the air for clues. However, his teammates' morning fire had been doused and the stench from it covered every other odor. He was about to start celebrating his victory as first one to the camp when his sensitive ears picked up a shuffle to his left. Kiba hit the ground and carefully crawled over, hiding behind a tent and peeking around to see who had made the noise.

Akamaru was standing in the campground, his fur bristling and his teeth bared. A low growl was coming from Aka, so Kiba slowly looked to see what had the dog so upset. It was Sasuke, who was standing, kunai in hand, looking ready to fight. Kiba's first instinct was to jump in and stop them, but he wanted to see what would happen and besides, Akamaru could easily fend for himself.

"Now Aka," Sasuke was saying, " I know you are mad at me for getting you and Kiba into trouble." Sasuke felt dumb talking to a dog, but he knew Akamaru was special and could understand perfectly what he was saying, so he continued. "For getting the three of us in trouble, I am sorry. No, not just sorry because I got in trouble, too, sorry because I never meant to hurt you or Kiba. It is just that…"

Sasuke paused. If he had felt stupid talking to a dog before, he felt even more stupid confessing to one. Especially one that was growling and probably prepared to bite the shit out of him. But… well, Sasuke had needed to talk to someone, and no one he knew seemed to be the right kind of person to listen, and now he was explaining himself to a freakin' dog, and it just started to pour out of him. At least as much as emotion could pour out of Uchihas.

"It is just that I have been lonely, and I can't seem to connect with anyone on my team. Sakura is wonderful and I know she would listen to me if I let her, but I don't know. She is simply not the right person to confide in. And Naruto is a good guy, and he has matured a lot, but still not enough for me to ever really confide in him. I'm not looking for a best friend in Kiba, but I was hoping that maybe, if I helped him, he would want to hang out with me. Just so I wouldn't be a lone all the time. I had hoped that since Kiba didn't seem to be interested in dating like everyone else, maybe he would have some time to… I don't know. I had come over that morning to ask Kiba if he wanted to hang out or train together. But he… he seemed to hate the fact that I was there even before I even said anything. I had thought he and I were just having a fun fight, but his reaction… I thought he hated me, like all the other guys. And my family…I go a little crazy when I remember everything."

Whoa. Kiba had to bite his lip to keep from yelling out in surprise, and his fangs cut his lip a little, causing him to taste blood. Sasuke had just spoken more words than Kiba had ever heard the Uchiha speak in his entire time of knowing him. Not only had Sasuke said a monologue, but it had been about his _feelings_. Kiba hadalways assumed the only feelings Sasuke had was hate and self-pity, but this Sasuke, this _stranger_, just admitted to being…human. Kiba didn't know what to do or say, so he just lay still, watching.

After Sasuke finished talking, he realized how much he had just blurted out to Akamaru. Akamaru, who would probably tell Kiba, and then he would think that Sasuke was weak. Quickly, he put his kunai up. So what if Aka attacked—he wasn't going to start fighting back again. Sasuke dropped to his knees in what he hoped was a sign to Aka that he wasn't going to fight.

The dog let down his guard and trotted over to Sasuke. They both looked at each other until Akamaru surprised the boy by licking his face, causing Sasuke to laugh.

"That is disgusting." But really Sasuke had been glad for the sloppy dog kiss, and he reached up and began to stroke Akamaru's fur. He was surprised at how soft it was, how it felt like velvet under his fingertips.

"I'm sorry Akamaru. Thank you for understanding. You are a good listener, better than most of the ninjas in the village. And…" The dog gazed up at him expectantly.

"And… do you think you could not tell Kiba about this?"

But the dog didn't agree. Instead, he barked and took Sasuke's sleeve in his mouth, tugging it, as if he wanted to show the boy something. Getting up, Sasuke allowed himself to be pulled. Over to the tent, and then next to it, where he found a very in-shock Kiba, too stupefied at being caught and what he had heard to get up.

Sasuke's face turned a dark shade of red and Kiba was scared he was angry. But when Sasuke didn't say anything, just stood and gazed down, Kiba knew that it was shame and not anger causing the deep blush. Uncomfortable, Kiba stood up and looked at Sasuke.

"I, uh…I'm sorry to have intruded, I didn't know you were going to, uh, going to, uh, have a heart to heart talkwith my dog---"

"You were spying. I wasn't having a 'heart to'---" Sasuke's tone was defensive and his voice was becoming cold, so Kiba held up his hand to silence the other boy.

"Sasuke, I am not trying too mock you, I am just still in shock from what I accidentally overheard. What you said was not intended for my ears and I apologize, and if I could take it back, I would. However, I did hear everything, and so I have several things to say to you, if you will please listen to me."

Sasuke didn't say anything, didn't move a muscle in face. But he didn't walk away, either, and so Kiba knew he was listening.

"First, about this whole fight, all if forgiven--- no questions or explanations needed. This is not a pity hand out;I am simply saying I am ready to let our fight go. Second, though I cannot promise to forget everything I heard you say, but I _can_ promise never to repeat it to anyone, and I do promise that. Finally,I am sorry for not having been kinder to you. No offense, but you make people dislike you with your attitude, and your superior skills cause jealousy that push me and the other shinobi away. I can understand why you find it difficult to talk to someone, and for that, I am sorry. I don't expect things to change between us if you don't wish it, but I would like to be your friend. And even if you don't want to be my friend, well…"

Kiba trailed off and gulped. He didn't even sound like himself, but something about this situation, and about Sasuke, made him feel different inside. He felt more mature, wiser and compassionate. So he took a deep breath and gave Sasuke the biggest gift he could.

"If you choose to not be my friend, but you still need someone, you may borrow Akamaru from time to time, if Aka doesn't mind. You obviously can talk to him, and I know from experience how soothing dogs can be. So just think about it, OK?"

Sasuke stood silently. What could he say, when he did not even know what to think? This was not the Kiba he knew. The boy in front of him was not the loud and arrogant boy he knew, who had been just as stupid as Naruto about running his mouth. This man in front of him was offering him everything he had with no strings attached. After years of having people being indifferent to him, Sasuke had begun to expect the worst in everyone. Not a good ninja. Too noisy. Too stupid. Too talkative. Not talkative enough. There were hundreds of reasons he had used to not like anyone so that when they were cold towards him. he could be three times as cold back. Now that someone was…was actually being _nice_ to him, he simply did not know what to do.

Then Sasuke looked at Kiba. Actually took in everything about how the boy looked. When they were in the academy, Kiba and Naruto had been the smallest boys. They seemed to use loud and egotistical personalities to make up for their small size. Now Sasuke realized Kiba was actually taller than him by at least two inches. The Inuzuka clan tattooed all their members at a young age. When Kiba had been a boy, the marks had made him look foolish, but now Sasuke could see that Kiba had grown into his red face tattoos, making him appear fierce and proud. The red triangles highlighted his sharp cheekbones and strong jaw. Kiba was, Sasuke realized, very masculine and beautiful.

While Sasuke looked at him, Kiba began to feel a little weird under the Uchiha's piercing stare.What he wasn't sure about was Sasuke's Sharingan. The boy had activated it in his scrutiny of Kiba, and Kiba wasn't sure if it had been by accident or on purpose, but those red eyed were so intense that he needed to look away. He could feel those strange eyes staring at him, and it felt like they saw everything he was, his history, his power, his emotions, his thoughts and Kiba wasn't ready for the visual intrusion.

"So…just think about it, Sasuke. I'm going to go find Sakura and get our supplies." With that said, Kiba practically ran to find the pink-haired girl, glad to be out from under the scrutiny of the other boy. He found her and they talked quickly, getting his supplies. When he was ready, Kiba grabbed everything and he and Aka were off, hoping to get at least halfway to the other campsite before nightfall. He hadn't meant to stay so long and was worried Naruto would punish him somehow for the half day delay.

Sasuke still stood there, thinking, long after Kiba left, long after dark and even after Sakura had gone to sleep. Though he felt violated by Inuzuka overhearing him, he realized he felt somewhat glad, too. Now it wasn't his secret. Fighting his instinct to become even colder and push Kiba away, Sasuke made a decision and went to bed. And for the first time in years, he slept soundly.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

Even though there was only a little time left of the mission, Sasuke worked hard to spend a lot of time with Kiba. The weeks had made everyone more relaxed and even Naruto seemed to forget about his authority and wanted to switch up partners. In the end, Kiba and Sasuke were stuck together often, talking more than doing the spying they were supposed to. Akamaru seemed to enjoy the Uchiha's company as well, something that made Kiba exceedingly happy—not many of his fellow ninjas felt comfortable around the dog, and it was obvious that Aka and Sasuke had a unique bond.

Sasuke couldn't believe how quickly the days passed with Kiba. Really, Sasuke couldn't believe anything that was happening with Kiba. At night, his voice hoarse from talking, actually _talking_ to the other boy, Sasuke would lie thinking with wonder about this new friendship. Kiba really was not the same boy he had been in academy with. That Kiba, well, he had been almost as annoying as Naruto. That Kiba had been loud and cocky and wore his coat hood pulled up, making his face look almost canine. Sasuke grimaced a little when he remembered how Kiba and Naruto used to get into it, picking on each other, their voices and arrogance rising until Sakura and Ino would beat them both to make them shut up. There was no way Sasuke could ever have been friend with that Kiba.

But now… Sasuke was glad he had started to follow his instincts. He had seen Kiba grow more serious as a shinobi, had watched how intently Kiba trained. Though he had never thought such an amazing friendship would come of it, he had known that maybe, just maybe there was something in the dog boy he could connect with. He had been so right, and then surprised some with how intelligent and witty Kiba now was. Whereas before Kiba's humor had been slightly weird and centered on pranks and mocking people, this Kiba was quick and smart with his jokes, and could always make the Uchiha laugh. And more importantly, this Kiba seemed to know how to listen to him and Sasuke, who had always shut himself off emotionally, found himself actually talking back, telling Kiba all sorts of stories about missions and Naruto. Talking to someone was incredible, and hearing all these words pour out of him helped Sasuke to feel less alone.

After another fast day of stories and laughs, Sasuke lay beside a dying fire, looking at his new friend who was already asleep. The burning embers made his face hot, but Sasuke's private thoughts were aiding the flush. The orange glow cast a subtle light on Kiba's peaceful face and Sasuke couldn't help but to feel a little stir in him. His eyes followed the line of Kiba's jaw, the other boy's cheeks stubbly from a few days of not shaving. It didn't take his Sharingan or any special eyes to see that the other boy was beautiful. Sasuke had noticed Kiba's good looks before, but never had he been so…enthralled with them. Sleep was trying desperately to claim Sasuke, and yet he refused to close his eyes, because he wasn't sure when he would get a chance to study Kiba's face so intently. Eventually, however, he fell asleep, thinking that maybe, just maybe Kiba was finally the person he could talk to about his brother.

Kiba was a little bummed the following morning because it was time to switch. He enjoyed his time with Sasuke, but he understood there was only so much Naruto Sakura could handle before she became very, very violent. The mission was so close to being over, he did not want anything to upset Sakura or Naruto—as long as those two were happy then they chances of him and Sasuke getting their chuunin titles back were good.

During breakfast Akamaru had seemed restless and barked about feeling uncomfortable. Because this usually meant he was restless, Kiba let him run ahead to Naruto's camp. Besides, with Aka there, Kiba could wait with Sasuke until Sakura arrived, and the Inuzuka wanted to spend every last minute with his new friend.

The two of them were sitting together, Kiba sprawled with his back against a tree while Sasuke sat Indian-style in front of him, back straight. They had already reached a point in their quick friendship where silence was comfortable, so without speaking the two just looked at each other. Kiba loved to look at Sasuke. Finally he understood what all the girls in the village were so in love with, because everything about Sasuke was perfection. When he stood up, he slouch was sexy and cool. His blue-black hair fell into his eyes, making him appear mysterious but desirable and his eyes…his eyes were like black holes. Kiba was a little scared of those eyes and could never look into them for too long, because the more he looked the more he felt those holes consuming him, surrounding him and in those holes was something frightening that Kiba did not understand. Fortunately there was warmth in the black eyes as well, and that warmth helped temper the scary depths and helped Kiba to trust his gorgeous new friend.

This morning, however, Kiba noticed that Sasuke seemed out of it, as if deep in thought. The other boy's brow was furrowed and his eyes looked almost stormy. It may have just been Kiba's imagination, or some trick of the sunlight that was filtering through the trees, but he could have sworn he saw flashes of red in a pattern different from the Sharingan he knew in Sasuke's eyes. Those flashes, imaginary or not, and Sasuke's intent face made Kiba silent—his friend obviously had something on his mind and if he wanted to share it with Kiba then he would in good time.

Good time came fast, as Sasuke began to speak as Kiba was thinking.

"Kiba, do you know the history of my clan?"

"No offense, Sas, but everyone knows it. You are the only survivor. Your entire clan was murdered. You are the last Uchiha."

Sasuke's eyes closed, as if he was in pain, and Kiba wished he could take back what he said. But then, Sasuke had brought it up, so Kiba just waited.

"That is almost correct. However, I am not the last Uchiha. My brother, Itachi, is also alive. He is the one who killed everyone, including my mother and father. When he murdered my entire clan, I swore revenge. I have yet to kill him, but I will someday. I… I am ashamed about what happened with Orochimaru. I am ashamed so many of my fellow ninjas were injured trying to find me, to help me. You and Aka were almost killed, Kakashi told me, and now that I have you as a friend… knowing you almost died and it would have been my fault…we never would be here…it is almost unbearable."

Kiba was going to argue but seeing Sasuke's face shut him up—the other boy was not finished.

"What I did, I can't ever undo. The hurt I caused. No one knows this, but I almost killed Naruto. Granted, I was in the second stage of the seal but…something inside of me really wanted to. My brother had told me that my family's heritage could only be fully claimed when an Uchiha killed his best friend. In my desperation for power, I actually considered killing Naruto. These are the things that make me push apart. Sometimes I just think that maybe, if no one cares about me, then no one I love will ever be hurt again. And the shame of how much pain I've already inflicted on others… it makes me afraid that maybe, in my quest to kill Itachi, I am becoming him."

Sasuke's lower lip was quivering, but Kiba knew better than to expect him to cry. The things he had just said… Kiba couldn't think of what to say in return. All he knew was that his new friend had so much hurt and pain that it would take a long time to get through. The prospect of so much baggage was a lot for Kiba, and it scared him, and with those dark eyes staring at him, pleading with him to say or do something, the only thing he could do was look away and hope the right answer would come to him soon.

While Kiba thought of what to say, Sasuke began to mentally kick himself. It was too soon, he shared too much too soon and it was going to be awkward. How could he have been so stupid, to think that Kiba would understand or know the right thing to say? He was such a fucking baka, to think that he could talk about these things. Sharing had seemed so right, but judging his new friend's (or ex friend, after this…) expression Sasuke knew that he should have stuck to keeping it secret and hidden in him. No one could know what he was feeling or what it was like to be him. God, why did he say anything?

The tension grew and neither boy knew what to do, so they both sat there, staring. After what seemed like hours, Sasuke closed his eyes and began to meditate. He was so angry at himself that his thoughts drowned out all of the noise around him and he began to sift through his feelings, trying to regain his calm and cool.

It was unfortunate he closed his eyes and became so absorbed in his anger, because had he been looking at Kiba that moment, he would have seen Kiba's body begin to tremble and his eyes grow wide with fear.

Stealing glances every now and then, Kiba wondered when Sasuke would speak again. He knew the Uchiha was probably waiting for him, but there was nothing Kiba could think of saying that didn't sound contrived and cheesy. It was just so much information, such a flood of pain that he could feel radiating out and he wanted nothing more than to run over and hold Sasuke, to hold the boy to his chest and protect him from all that sorry, but he didn't think that their friendship was so close that hugging and touching was allowed. So he watched the other boy's face twist with torment until finally Sasuke had closed his eyes and began some deep breathing exercises.

That was when the shadow fell on Kiba. When he looked up, his eyes were instantly gripped by a pair of red eyes, Sharingan eyes. The two cold, red orbs held Kiba's own canine-like ones as his insides began to freeze with fear. Kiba found he couldn't move, he couldn't talk and he could scarcely breathe. Not sure if it was the Sharingan that was paralyzing him or just his own fear, he regretted sending Akamaru ahead. His mother had warned him not to be separated from his ninja dog for too long—the Inuzuka's skills relied on their pets—and now most of his jutsus were worthless. Then again—he could feel the power behind those eyes and knew he and Akamaru had an ice cube's chance in hell against this new foe. Akamaru must have felt this incredible chakra power earlier, and that was what had made him feel uncomfortable. They were on a mission, and Kiba couldn't believe he had not paid attention to his dog's intuition—in fact, Kiba realized he hadn't been paying attention to anything but Sasuke. At least Aka was far away from here and wouldn't get hurt. Kiba knew he would not be the same as the two red eyes began to swirl a little, mesmerizing him.

The owner of the Sharingan was one of the most beautiful people Kiba had ever seen. Sasuke was gorgeous, but in a masculine way, as the years and sorrow had given his face lines and edges. This face had shadows of Sasuke's, but it was softer and almost androgynous. The smooth skin was flawless and ivory and contrasted sharply with the long, silky black hair. There were no descriptions Kiba could find other than beautiful, and it disturbed him how enraptured he was in Itachi's looks while his limbs froze with fear.

Unable to break the gaze and frighteningly, not entirely willing to, Kiba continued to shake.


	8. Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. Also, there is some extreme violence in here now. Be warned.

A/N: So, although I probably should have written more, since this is an awkward place to leave off, I had a review that was awesome and felt a need to retouch my story. So, if you want, though I supposed you don't have to, go back and re-read. I added a whole lot, took out even more, and this product is just something I like so, so much better. Constructive criticism is the best, it really helps.

That being said:

Kawaii Kitsune-kun: Thank you so much for your review. I know you were worried about sounding like a flamer, but I understood what you were saying. You pointed out exactly what I was uncomfortable with: I didn't think Sasuke, particularly and older Sasuke, would be so unbelievably petty. And the fight with Itachi just didn't work. So thanks a lot, and I think you'll like what I have done with the story.

"Sasuke."

Sasuke's eyes were still closed and he didn't move.

"Sasuke." Itachi's voice was low and lilting, and yet somehow full pf power, enough power to finally break Sasuke's trance.

Sasuke's eyes opened to see Kiba shaking in what looked like a seizure, except Kiba's eyes were focused over Sasuke's head. Heart beating hard with fear, Sasuke began to panic. He had left his guard down and now his brother had the advantage! Itachi's presence, just knowing his brother was directly behind him, made Sasuke go empty inside.

"Itachi."

"Little brother, how is it that you have been camped her for weeks and did not notice my presence? I barely even hid from you."

Sasuke's face burned with shame. He should have noticed—that was what they were on the fucking mission for! He had been so involved with Kiba that he had stopped his primary job—watching. Now his heart wrenched in fear and torment as he watched his new friend seize and shake, his beautiful face contorted in pain, knowing his brother's Sharingan was torturing Kiba. Oh God—he couldn't lose Kiba, not now, not like this, he needed to move, he needed to fight, he needed to save his friend. But… if he let his brother focus on Kiba, he could…he could kill Itachi. Kiba might die but so would Itachi and then his revenge would be complete. Sasuke had waited so long and his body wanted so badly to use Itachi's distraction and finish him, but his heart was torn. He didn't know if he could let Kiba die in order to exact his revenge.

"Sasuke, why are you just sitting there, watching your teammate suffer? You must be weaker than I thought. How is it that I warn you and warn you and yet you only get weaker, never stronger? You make me sick."

Sasuke activated his Sharingan.

"Nii-san, you have changed teammates. I didn't think Konoha shifted teams around. They stuck you with a weak brat and this disappoints me as I was hoping to find your friend Naruto. Is he with you? Your other teammate, the girl, was unable to tell me the answer I desired. Perhaps you can help me out."

At this Sasuke's blood stopped flowing in his veins. It had been subtle, but Itachi was taunting him. He couldn't mean what he said about Sakura. Oh god, it was happening, he had let a few people in and now Itachi was going to destroy everyone he loved—Naruto, Sakura….Kiba.

Well, if he was going to kill them all, then Sasuke was going to take Itachi down with him. He would avenge his clan, his parents and his friends if it meant dying to wait for his brother in hell.

Slowly, Sasuke stood up. He turned to face Itachi.

"Itachi, leave Kiba alone. Leave Naruto alone and Sakura alone and anyone who is not me alone. Your fight is now, and has always been with me. I owe you your death."

"Stupid boy. You have grown taller and put on some muscle but when it comes down to it, I was wrong to put hope into you. I spared you to make you stronger, and yet you were unable to use even the additional power that fool Orochimaru gave you. You are pathetic and not worth fighting. I am glad you were too weak to kill your friend Naruto, because then I would have to fight you out of anger. At least I don't need to waste my time. Please tell me where Naruto is."

Clenching his fists, Sasuke began to seethe. He was stronger than he had ever been. How could his brother not see that? Why the fuck did Itachi still care about Naruto?

Kiba began to scream and Sasuke whirled around. He saw Kiba on the ground, his limbs twisting horribly as screams and growls ripped from his throat. Blood began to stream out of the sides of Kiba's mouth and nostrils and the sharp eyes that Sasuke had loved gazing into rolled violently into the boy's skull.

Rage began pooling with the chakra at Sasuke's feet and he used it, pulling it steadily up and in, out into his hands. The _chidori_ formed faster that Sasuke had ever made it before, and it burned and crackled.

"Baka. Remember what happened last time?" Itachi sneered and Kiba screamed out even louder, all of his muscles taut from the pain.

"YOUR FIGHT IS WITH ME!" Sasuke's speed was so fast he appeared behind Itachi in a flash. Rock Lee had trained with him for months on speed and it paid off. Itachi didn't move, but Kiba's body went limp on the ground, more blood splashing out of his mouth.

"DAMN YOU!" Sasuke, in the moment, let go of the _chidori_ with one hand, grabbing Itachi and pulling the man to him, instead of charging. Itachi's defensive stance didn't protect against the pull and he was forced to face Sasuke.

There was a huge burst of chakra as Itachi countered the explosive technique and both brothers were flung back a few steps. Normal ninjas might have been killed by the burst of burning energy, but the strength in Itachi and the rage in Sasuke caused them to remain cool, staring at each other.

"Your new tactic is to kill us both? Has your life become that depressing? I will admit you are stronger than I gave you credit for, but desperation isn't enough to beat me."

But Sasuke was too far lost in his emotions. His thoughts disappeared and he went berserk, attacking his brother. His blows and kicks came in a flurry. Itachi was able to block them, but it required engaging his entire body. His brother _had _become better. There was never an opening as each time Itachi would block a punch, a kick was already about to hit him. Sasuke's hits never weakened and never slowed, fueled by his lust for revenge. Finally, Itachi managed to push his brother away.

"Sasuke, you have improved. I will stop holding back."

The words hit Sasuke like a punch, pushing him further into his blood-lust state. Itachi waited, then raised an eyebrow in a small display of surprise as Sasuke began to laugh.

"You don't need to hold back! I am ready for you!" Sasuke grabbed his sides from the laughter. "This is it, Itachi. I am ready for you."

"Let us begin."

Sasuke lost all sense of time, movement, emotions. His body was in autopilot. He had worked with Kakashi on avoiding Itachi's Sharingan attacks. It felt as if time had slowed down, and all that existed was his brother and him. He closed his eyes and launched into attacks. If his muscles hurt, he couldn't feel them. If his brother had punched him, he didn't know. All he knew was the feeling of movement, of advancing on Itachi, of a slow and steady mantra building in his heart that pushed him to Kill Kill Kill. The fight seemed to last forever.

But then he stopped moving. He opened his eyes and saw Itachi sprawled on the ground, blood soaked and defeated.

His moment had come. He could actually kill his brother. Sasuke's heart hurt with jow and confusion. His whole life had led to this moment and he wasn't sure what to do. After he killed his brother…what then? Where would he go? The thought frightened him so much that he remained frozen, staring at his brother's crumpled form on the ground. It was another sound that finally broke his trance.

A cough. Sasuke turned and saw Kiba vomiting blood. It hit him—he didn't care what was next. He would kill Itachi and begin his life again, whatever that life might be. It terrified him, but he had Kiba, and with his new friend… he felt ready. His heart lept, it soared, it hurt with all the emotions he had built up. Tears of complete joy formed in Sasuke's eyes, his mind almost broken by this moment, this moment he had worked so hard for.

Sasuke whirled around, too fast for eyes to see, and lunged, shoving his kunai deep into Itachi's heart.

In a puff of smoke, Itachi's body vanished.

Utter despair racked through Sasuke, wrapping its tendrils deep in his mind and heart. A shadow copy. How he could have been so stupid, to think that he had actually beat his brother?

"Little Brother. What an impressive show you put on with that clone."

Sasuke whirled around to find Itachi looming above him, red eyes bearing down. There was, however, blood from a cut on Itachi's cheek.

Itachi took a finger and wiped away some of the blood, only to put the finger in his mouth, tasting his life force.

"Impressive. You actually nicked me."

Sasuke just stared, mute.

"Sasuke, where is Naruto? I'm tired of your playing around."

At this, the rage in Sasuke helped him to stand up, even though his entire body ached. His arms and legs were beginning to go numb from his earlier efforts fighting.

"You bastard. Your fight is with me." Sasuke tried to swing a punch, but his body was through, and he began to fall. Itachi grabbed his shoulder, hard, and wrenched him up.

"I am tired of you."

The Sharingan began to swirl and suddenly Sasuke was in another world.

Everything was red.

It was raining and Sasuke could feel his body, soaked and cold.

All around him were his friends, blindfolded and on their knees. Behind them were hundreds of Itachis.

Sasuke tried to scream out but discovered his lips weren't moving. When he touched his fingers to his mouth, he felt his lips….sewn together. Panic filled him and pain, and his vision swirled. He kept trying to scream and the more he tried to scream, the more he felt the pain in his lips.

All of the Itachis drew swords.

Sasuke watched as his brother and brother's clones began to cut away at his friends.

He watched Shikamaru's fingers get cut off, one by one.

He watched Chouji's flesh being cut off in strips, and then force-fed to the poor boy.

Sasuke watched Ino and Sakura being cut apart, Hinata's and Neji's eyes being stabbed out, Rock Lee's hands and feet removed, on and on, everyone he knew being tortured and sliced away at.

His throat felt raw like he had been screaming for months, but no sounds came from him. Tears flowed down his face but he couldn't tell because the rain was washing them all away, burning his eyes as he stared at the macabre specter.

And then everyone disappeared and it was just him.

How long had he been here? His body felt weak and Sasuke could no longer remember how he came to this place, or why he was being forced to watch such awful things, or even if the things were real.

He closed his eyes.

When he opened them, Itachi was standing in front of him, holding Naruto's disembodied head. Behind Itachi was a huge swirling fox, full of evil and rage and desire.

Sasuke's eyes rolled up in his head and he fainted.

It was dark when he woke up. So black, in fact, that he couldn't see anything. But he felt something warm pressed up against him. The warmth was comforting. He slid an arm up and over the owner of the warmth. It soothed him, and he sighed. It had all been some kind of horrible dream.

But then a slow red light began, building in strength, until Sasuke looked at what he was holding.

He saw Kiba's face, frozen in death, staring listlessly back at him. Kiba's body was covered in blood, and next to them was the same bathtub Sasuke had bathed the boy in. All around it were pieces of Kiba's flesh and Sasuke suddenly saw himself, cutting up his friend, letting the blood pull in the tub.

Sasuke wanted to vomit, but because his lips were still sewn shut, he inhaled his own bile and began to choke.

He was suffocating on his own vomit. Just as stars began to appear in his vision, he heard his brother's voice.

"You are weak, Little brother."

And then black.

A/N: Holy shit, sorry it got so gross. I am, to be completely honest, a little horrified with myself. This all just came out, and although I know it works better than what I had, it is just so intense. This story is taking control of me or something.

Anyway, thanks again to everyone reviewing, please please please don't let this turn you off of my fic.

3


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

0000000

The sunlight warmed Sasuke's face. Unwilling to open his eyes, Sasuke focused on the pain in his body. For all that had happened, he felt surprisingly at peace and…rested. He listened. There were no birds chirping and no wind in the trees. Groaning, Sasuke tried to sit up, but found he was too weak.

"Sasuke."

The voice sounded so familiar, so comforting.

"Please, Sasuke, open your eyes."

When he opened them, slowly because the light hurt them, he saw the most beautiful face staring down at him. Red triangles pulled up as Kiba smiled, his pointy teeth shining.

"Hey, can you speak?"

At first it was difficult, but eventually Sasuke found his voice.

"H-help me s-s-sit up. P-please."

Kiba leaned in, gently lifting Sasuke's arm over his neck. Putting his own arm around Sasuke's back, he lifted until Sasuke was sitting upright against some pillows. It was then that Sasuke was able to take in his surroundings. He was in a hospital room.

"W-what happened?"

"I don't remember much. Itachi was standing behind you, he was looking at me, and I felt the worst pain in my entire life. My whole body had felt like it was on fire. I saw you, standing and yelling at Itachi, I saw you rush at him, but the pain had become so intense I must have blacked out. When I came to, you were lying on the ground, Sasuke."

Kiba paused and Sasuke noticed tears forming in the other boy's eyes.

Voice cracking, Kiba continued.

"Sasuke, I thought you were dead. Your face was so white and your lips were blue and you were barely breathing. I couldn't find any wounds on you so I wasn't sure what to do. You were so cold and no matter what I did I couldn't get you to warm up. While I was trying to get you warm, Akamaru found us. He said he could help me find Sakura—"

At this Sasuke's eyes went wide with fear.

"S-sakura! Is she OK? W-where is she? Oh g-god, if she was k-kille—" But he couldn't finish because Kiba put his hand over Sasuke's mouth.

"She is fine. Now. But she wasn't. When Aka and I found her…Sasuke, she was…broken."

"W-what do you mean?"

Concern in his eyes, Kiba reached up and brushed some of Sasuke's hair out of his eyes.

"When we found her… She was rocking back and forth, cutting herself over and over with a kunai. Her body was covered in blood and she kept muttering about how useless she was. She couldn't hear me when I yelled at her. I even… I even hit her to try and break her trance but it didn't do anything. So I took her knife and carried her to Naruto's campsite. Naruto was there, he was fine, he never even knew anything had happened. It took forever to calm him down and tell him what had happened—he was so torn up about you and Sakura, I've never seen him so angry—and we ran to get you. We brought you to the Kage of the Hidden Village of Mist and contracted their ninjas and medics to get you back to Konoha. Tsunade worked on you and Sakura for so long, and I was so worried about you, I didn't know what was wrong with you and I couldn't speak to you and I thought you were going to die and---"

Kiba stopped, choking on his own tears. Ashamed of his crying, he turned his face away and hid behind his hands.

Closing his eyes, Sasuke leaned back on his pillow. It was so much to take in and he wasn't sure where to begin sorting his emotions out.

"How long have I been in the hospital?"

"It has been five weeks. I thought you were never going to wake up. It…it terrified me."

Kiba broke down again, and so he missed the smirk on Sasuke's face. Sasuke reached out a hand, slowly because of his still-weak body, and lay it on Kiba's. The other boy looked up, eyes wild and wet, face streaked with tears.

"I'm not ready, Kiba. I'm going back to sleep. Please…stay with me."

There was no time for an answer, because as soon as he had murmured his request, Sasuke had already drifted off to sleep.

o o o o o o

There was the smell of coffee in the air. Sasuke could hear someone moving around.

"I didn't think they allowed coffee in the hospital."

"You're awake!" Sasuke opened his eyes and was pleased to see the voice belonged to Kiba.

"Hey."

"Yeah, theydon't allow coffee in the hospital. We are at your house. I convinced the Hokage to let me bring you here so you weren't taking up hospital space sleeping. Once she admitted you were stable, we moved you back to your apartment. We've been here for a week."

"…We've' been here?"

Kiba blushed heavily.

"I-I have been here with you, taking care of you." Eager to change the subject, Kiba continued. "Would you like some coffee? I am afraid I make mine pretty strong, and you are out of sugar and milk, so you'll have to drink it black."

"Sounds good."

While Kiba walked away to the kitchen, Sasuke found he had enough strength to move himself into a sitting position. He was in his bed. When he glanced around the room, he saw a mat on the floor with some crumpled clothing and a blanket beside it. Kiba walked back into the room carrying two mugs.

"You've been sleeping on my floor? Why not at your place? Or, if you had to be here, on the couch or something?"

"I was afraid you would wake up alone. You have been…having nightmares, Sasuke, and you werescreaming. I couldn't wake you up, but…you sounded like you were in so much pain thatI didn't want you to wake up alone and scared."

Though he couldn't remember having nightmares, Sasuke believed Kiba. Taking a coffee mug in his hand, Sasuke cradled the warmth and closed his eyes. Instantly he saw Itachi, he saw all the Itachi copiescutting apart his friends. He felt the pain of being cut all over his body, it felt so real, they all looked so real, and he might have believed it had he not felt a strong hand close over his, holding his mug.

"Sasuke, look at me."

But when he did open his eyes to lookat Kiba, all he could see was flowing blood and Kiba's face contorted in pain. Sasuke began to shake until he spilled all of the coffee on him, burning his skin. The sharp pain was enough to bring him out of his trance.

"Shit! Oh fuck, I spilled your coffee Kiba, I'm sorry." Sasuke's face winced a little in pain.

"Sorry? Baka. I don't care about that—are you hurt? Did it burn you?"

"A little."

Kiba stood and placed his own mug on a dresser. Sasuke started to get up but stopped when he felt his body's weakness.. Kiba rushed back to him and began to pick him up.

"Kiba, what in the hell do you think you are doing?"

Winking, Kiba said, "Returning a favor."

0000000

In the bathroom, Kiba sat Sasuke on the toilet, making sure the boy was secure. He then went to the bathtub and began to run a bath.

"Kiba, I don't know what you are doing, but if it is what I think it is, that really isn't necessary."

"You can't stay in bed with coffee all over you and you are too weak to help yourself, so shut up---I don't mind doing this. I'll be right back, I am just going to throw those sheets in the wash." Kiba got up and walked quickly out of the bathroom.

Blushing, Sasuke watched his bathtub fill with water. Because of his clan's ranking and history, when his parents had been killed he had been left with the mansion. Unable to live there, seeing his memories come to life each day as he walked through empty halls, he had finally decided to sell all the furniture and lock up the home. He kept the shell, never going in, never going back into the rooms, but he didn't feel right selling his parents home. The furniture, however, had all been antiques and had brought in a lot of money. Sasuke had used that money to buy a very nice apartment. This bathroom was a sign of how nice the place was.

The bathtub was marble, deep and wide, with enough room for two people. The floor was tiled, as were the walls. The sink and mirror were large and faced the tub, so that anyone in the bath could see themselves in it.

Sasuke wasn't comfortable with this. He knew why Kiba was helping him: he knew he had already done this for Kiba. But Kiba had been unconscious. And Kiba didn't know about… the arousal Sasuke had felt. The Uchiha was worried that this time, he might not be able to control himself and Kiba would see, well, _everything_.

But there was no time to do anything as Kiba came walking back into the bathroom. He stopped the water from running and double-checked the temperature of the bath.

"Everything is ready. I am going to help you undress now." He leaned in and began to unbutton Sasuke's pajama top.

"K-kiba, you really don't have to be doing this." As Sasuke spoke, he began to re-button the ones Kiba had just unfastened. Kiba hit his hands away gently.

"Sasuke. I know this is uncomfortable for you. And this may weird you out, but it may help—I have already seen you naked."

Sasuke's face went white.

"Wh-what? When?"

"You have been unconscious for over a month, you don't think you went that whole time without a bath! And don't worry, now that I have bathed you, I know now it is no big deal, so I know you weren't being a pervert when you helped me!" Kiba smiled, and then continued to unbutton the shirt, finishing and sliding it off Sasuke's shoulders.

Sasuke gave up and began to focus on the tiles while Kiba removed the rest of his clothing. If he could just look at the tiles and not pay attention, he would be at no risk of any…embarrassing moments.

But then Kiba took off his own shirt and shoes, and rolled up his pant legs.

"Why the hell are you taking _your_ clothes off?" The panic in Sasuke's voice made Kiba laugh, a deep hearty chuckle from his belly.

"Sasuke, you need to fucking relax—this is really no big deal. I don't understand what you are so paranoid about. I'm not going to do anything but bathe you. I've just been doing this long enough to know your tub is so big, if I don't take off my shirt and stick my feet in again, I end up as soaked as you! Now, stop arguing and being a sissy and just let me help you."

"But---"

"No buts. Shut up, Uchiha, if you keep talking, you will be the one to make this awkward."

The argument was over and there was nothing for Sasuke to do except watch. Kiba's upper body was much stronger than the Sharingan user had expected. The boy's arms were long and strong, strips of muscle bulging and weaving as he moved, like a dance. His chiseled torso made Sasuke a little jealous—even after hours of training and crunches, his had never looked as cut as Kiba's. The dog boy's skin was smooth and tan. Sasuke had seen Kiba naked before, but he hadn't noticed until now what a spectacular body the other boy had.

Moving over to Sasuke, Kiba scooped the naked man into his arms, He went over to the bathtub and, stepping one foot in for balance, slowly lowered the body into the warm water.

Sighing, Sasuke had to admit that Kiba got the temperature just right. It was cool enough that his coffee burn didn't sting, but warm enough to soothe his muscles and calm him down.

"Thanks Kiba, for helping me. I'll call you when I am ready to get out."

"Whatever, you can't even undress yourself. I'm helping with the whole bath."

With that, Kiba crawled behind Sasuke, sitting his butt on the edge of the tub. His legs straddled Sasuke, the calves hugging his arms, and he could help but to notice how strong and tan the legs were.

"Close your eyes, I am pouring water on to your hair."

It was the most relaxing thing Sasuke had ever felt. Kiba scooped water into a cup and then poured it over Sasuke's head. He could feel the water running through his hair, warm rivulets flowing down his ears and shoulders.

Sasuke heard Kiba put shampoo in his hands. And then…oh god. Kiba's hands rubbed the shampoo into his hair, creating a think lather. Deft fingers massaged Sasuke's scalp, and Kiba's claws would gentlyscratch, raising goosebumps on the Uchiha's skin.

"Kiba…this is…wonderful."

"Don't be getting all weird on me, Uchiha." The jibe was meant as a joke, but Sasuke heard some strain in Kiba's voice. What did that even mean? Was Kiba upset with him for saying something?

The massaging shampoo was so relaxing and calming that Sasuke was actually upset when Kiba said softly, "close your eyes."

Again he felt the streams of water running through his hair, washing away the suds. When it had all been rinsed out, Kiba muttered, "Lean forward." Feeling Kiba's hands gently pushing on his back, Sasuke shifted up and leaned forward, resting his forehead on his knees.

He felt strong hands begin to knead his shoulders.

"I don't remember massaging being a helpful part of bathing, Inuzuka," he sighed.

"It usually isn't. You've been through a lot, though, and since this is your first day awake, you need a little extra attention. And for having been comatose for weeks, your shoulders are very tense."

Sasuke didn't want to say that he was tense because he enjoyed the Inuzuka's touch so much. It occurred to Sasuke that after his parents died, he had never experienced what id was like to be touched like this. All his physical contact had come from Naruto sparring, or from fighting, or from Orochimaru, who had only wanted to use him. Kiba's touch was different. The boy seemed to know exactly how to move his hands, how to stroke and knead Sasuke's shoulders. It felt so good that Sasuke almost forgot the weirdness of the situation.

"…Sasuke…may I speak frankly with you?"

"What about?" The fingers were rubbing into his sore muscles around his neck and shoulders and it felt so, so delicious, but Sasuke was worried. Was Kiba going to say something about the massage? Was Sasuke acting wrong, would Kiba think he was perverted for enjoying it so much?

"Kakashi explained to me what Itachi does with his Sharingan—the _Mangekyou_. He explained the other world, and the images and sensation he can inflict on his victims." Kiba felt Sasuke become tense under his hands, but he kept rubbing slowly. "He told me about how it can break someone, even ruin them. That is why I was so terrified for you. I just want you to know that I think eventually you will need to talk about it. And when you do, I want to be there for you."

Upon the mention of Itachi's name, however, Sasuke's mind had put up a barrier. All he could see was him plunging his kunai into his brother's heart. He saw the puff of smoke that signaled his failure, yet again, to kill his brother.

"I'm clean now, Kiba. Please help me out."

"You aren't clean yet. Don't change the subject, Sasuke."

"Kiba, take me out of this tub now, I don't want to talk about anything, I want to be alone." Sasuke straightened his back so that Kiba's fingers could no longer rub his skin.

"Sasu…please. Don't do this. Not yet."

"I'm not doing anything. And neither are you, apparently, because I am still in this tub after I asked you to help me out."

Kiba heaved out a sigh and leaned back, resting against the wall. He shut his eyes. Kakashi-sensei had warned him. He had said that if Kiba spoke too soon, Sasuke would shut him out. He knew he had spoken too soon, but the moment had seemed so right, and now that it was going poorly Kiba felt… disappointed and hurt. It took him a minute to realize he was hurt because Sasuke had shot him down as an available ear so quickly. Hearing the coldness in Sasuke's voice was like a kunai to Kiba's heart: he had thought they were getting somewhere, that he and Sasuke were friends, that he could help Sasuke, but apparently the other boy didn't return his feelings.

There was a large amount of splashing and slapping as Sasuke tried hard to get out of the tub on his own. Water surged over Kiba's pants and chest.

"Goddamnit, Sasuke, stop! You are going to hurt yourself!"

"I wouldn't be doing this if you would do as I ask!"

Sasuke continued to struggle, his weak body unable to lift itself up, and when Kiba finally reached down to help, Sasuke began to fight off the helping hands.

"No—I'll do it myself, you obviously don't want to help me."

"I do want to help you—damnit, Sasuke, stop hitting away my hands!—I do want to help—if—you'll—just… ARGHH!" Kiba grabbed both of the Uchiha's wrists and held them with one hand to stop the punching. He reached his other arm under Sasuke's shoulders and awkwardly began to lift the boy from the tub. Finally, they were standing, Sasuke's feet still in the water, chests pressed together, faces close. Both were breathing hard from the effort and the frustration each felt.

"Sasuke, I am going to let go of your wrists now. I will pick you up and carry you to the bed. If you hit me, however, I will leave you here, in the water, to become a prune or drown or who the fuck knows. Don't hit me anymore. Ok?"

Though he wanted to keep fighting, to punch and kick his anger out, Sasuke knew his body wouldn't even let him fight, and he didn't want to be left in the tub.

"Ok."

Slowly, Kiba's fingers released Sasuke's hands. He moved his hand along Sasuke's shoulder, just above it, not quite touching the skin. Sasuke closed his eyes and breathed deeply. Even with his anger, we wasn't used to such a, such a _sensual_ touch and if he wasn't careful, Kiba's tricky fingers would woo him back. He wanted to stay focused, because he was still upset with the Inuzuka's prying.

Kiba ran his fingers lightly up Sasuke's neck, then along his cheek bone, and finally, he pushed some of the hair that had fallen forward out of Sasuke's eyes. He could feel Sasuke's deep breathing in his chest, which was pressed tight against the other boy's.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke. I shouldn't have said anything. You don't have to talk to me or anyone if you don't want to." Kiba didn't know what was going on, why he was holding Sasuke this close. He knew he wasn't ready to move yet. He wanted to stay here, just a little while longer, their bodies close, and feel the Uchiha breathe.

"Please, Kiba… just take me to bed. I want to be alone."


	10. Chapter 10

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

A/N: I'm so happy people are enjoying the story. I realize it may still be moving slowly, sorry, it is just that I have a lot of ideas I want to flesh out. I just want to say that I am very open to constructive criticisms and ideas from readers. In fact, this story improved ten fold because of someone's suggestions. So please, if you have any ideas or read something you don't like, please tell me.

Edit: REVISED

Last, about Sasuke being an "uke" in this fic. I think this is one of those tough areas with this pairing. I don't see either of them as uke, and so writing convincing scenes is tricky. Sasuke is currently uke-ish because of what is happening in the story, but I'm not sure that means he will be in a permanent submissive roll. Two controlling and dominating personalities fighting for seme…hottt.

0 0 0 0 0

The room was dark and Sasuke watched shadows glide along the wall as the hours passed. He was alone now—Kiba not only was not sleeping in the room, he had left the apartment, slamming the door on his way out. The whole thing had been disastrous. Kiba had carried him back into his room, toweled him off half-heartedly and helped Sasuke get dressed in fresh pajamas. Sasuke knew there were bruises forming on his arms from when Kiba's strong hands had grabbed and "helped" him so roughly. He couldn't quite understand why Kiba was so mad—they had become close friends on the mission, but not so close that Sasuke was going to bare heart and soul to the Inuzuka. Why couldn't Kiba understand that?

Kiba couldn't understand any his struggle with his brother, and Sasuke felt stupid in having ever thought the boy might have comprehended the pain, the hate and the suffering Sasuke felt.

The night air was silent around him, wrapping him like a blanket. It was so quiet Sasuke could almost hear himself shiver. In his mind, he could only see Itachi. This had been their second encounter since his brother had killed their parents and Sasuke had failed to kill him again. Hell, all he had only been able to put a scratch on his brother's cheek. Years of training, years of developing his skills and he was not even in the same league with his sibling. He hadn't even noticed he had been fighting a clone…with his Sharingan activated.

Sasuke rolled over. His strength was coming back quickly, and he was glad. It would be embarrassing to have forced Kiba to leave only to have to beg the boy to come back because he couldn't even move himself. Sasuke had needed Kiba to leave and had used some less-than-friendly terms to express it—but why? It wasn't just that Kiba couldn't understand the pain…it was more than that. Sasuke realized that every time (and every time was often) he remembered Kiba twitching and shaking on the ground, blood coming out of his mouth-- his own heart squeezed painfully in his chest. He realized that he had become closer to Kiba than he originally was giving himself credit for and never wanted to see the beautiful boy in that kind of pain, that kind of danger, ever again. Inuzuka had almost died twice now because of Sasuke. He knew the saying: the third time is the charm. That was one charm Sasuke couldn't bear and, although it hurt almost as much, he knew he needed to end the friendship with Kiba. He would rather hurt and have the boy alive then hurt because he, through default, had killed his closest friend.

Oh god, that was what Kiba was, wasn't it? His closest friend. How many friends did Sasuke even have that would be willing to help him around the house, feed him…bathe him? He tried to imagine Naruto washing him instead of Kiba and found the idea preposterous. The blonde dobe would never treat him so gently, or touch him the same way…

Sasuke remembered what it had been like to be pressed up against Kiba's chest. When it had happened, he had been so angry he never focused on the sensations of being so close. But now, in the darkness of his room, he could almost feel the smooth, wet flesh of Kiba's taut stomach pressed against his. He could almost feel the heat, the strong arms wrapped tightly around him. That gorgeous face and those wild eyes looking at him, full of emotion…

But then those wild eyes turned black, blood tears falling from them. The arms that had been holding him so firmly slipped off and Kiba's corpse fell to the floor. Sasuke looked down in terror and saw that Kiba and the entire bathroom were covered in blood. His eyes moved to the mirror. Instead of his own reflection, he saw his brother's eyes staring back, and realized in horror that he, Sasuke, was Itachi. The Mangekyou Sharingan began to swirl, pain gripped his body and…

Sweat was covering his entire body as he jerked awake. He had been sleeping and, although it was just a dream, it solidified his belief that cutting off ties with Kiba was the only thing he could do. His heart, painfully beating at the vision of Kiba's corpse, made Sasuke scared—he was already too attached. With his decision made, Sasuke rolled over for a night of fitful sleep.

0 0 0 0 0

Pacing wasn't calming him down, so Kiba, filled with frustration, punched his apartment wall. He watched his fist smash through the plaster and brick and felt his knuckles break.

"**DAMNIT**!"

Shaking his hand only made it worse—he had definitely fucked it up. He would need to visit a medic Ninja for healing. He grabbed his keys and headed out, slamming his apartment door behind him.

Kiba wasn't quite sure why he was so angry and hurt. It frustrated him that Sasuke had kicked him out of the apartment, regardless off all Kiba had done for him, so quickly. He still couldn't believe how fast the Uchiha's attitude had changed. One moment, Kiba was enjoying himself, happy he was helping Sasuke relax so much. The other boy seemed to really like the bath, the massage… but then, like a baka, he had opened his mouth. It was just that… Kiba thought that, even if it was too soon to speak with Sasuke, he assumed the other boy would forgive him. During the mission, Sasuke had even opened up about his brother—so why the hell wouldn't he open up now?

A shudder ran down Kiba's spine as he remembered what it had been like to be under Itachi's jutsu. The pain had been indescribable. The closest he could think of was it was as if Itachi had every single nerve in his body activated and was slowly (and very, very painfully) killing it. At one point, Kiba was still sure his heart had stopped beating. But the Sharingan was all about mind tricks, and the whole thing could have been in his head. But the memory of that pain, real or imagined, lingered and woke Kiba up at night.

Therefore Kiba knew, after the small bit of 'attention' he had received from Itachi, that Sasuke's fight must have been ten times worse. That was why he wanted Sasuke to talk to him about it—mostly because he couldn't imagine how much it must be weighing down the Uchiha, but also because Kiba wanted to tell Sasuke about his own experience. There didn't seem to be anyone else he felt comfortable discussing the visions and nightmares he still had, the paralyzing fear he now harbored for Itachi.

Damnit. Why was Sasuke pushing him away? Kiba decided to give the Uchiha a couple of days alone—after all, he was probably still shook up about the encounter with his brother and need time to think—but then he was going over to let Sasuke know that he was his friend, that he couldn't push him away.

What Sasuke didn't know, and what Kiba planned on telling him, was that the Inuzuka had discovered how much he needed the friendship with Sasuke. Never before had Kiba been so close to another male. He had been so loud and confrontational as a boy, and it seemed that no one but Sasuke had forgiven him for that. Sasuke had seen him for what he was now—older, more skillful as a ninja, smarter…more mature. More than that, Kiba was glad it was Sasuke and not some other guy, like Shikamaru or even Shino. Something about the Uchiha was special, and Kiba connected with it and wanted to be with it, with _him_, all the time. Finally, Kiba could understand why so many girls of the village were in love with him—and they didn't even know the black-haired boy half as well as he did!

Immersed in his thoughts, Kiba didn't see Sakura until he ran straight into her. Knocked off balance, he fell to the ground, trying to break the fall with his hands. Including his broken hand. Overcome with pain, Kiba curled into fetal position and clutched the injured limb to his chest.

"DAMNIT SAKURA, I'M REALLY HURT HERE!"

"WELL THEN WATCH WHERE YOU ARE GOING, _DOBE_!"

But Sakura felt bad and knelt down beside the moaning boy.

"Let me see if, Kiba. Come on.. Kiba, for the love of—just give me your—LET ME SEE YOUR DAMN HAND!" She hit him hard over the head. Kiba reached both hands up to cover the new injury but she grabbed the wrist of the one he was nursing and inspected it.

"You HIT ME? What kind of medic ninja are you?"

"An effective one, I have your hand, don't I?"

She felt around the fingers, watching him wince when her fingers touched sore spots.

"You are hurting me and making it worse."

"How did you break all four knuckles, Kiba? And I think I feel a shattered finger or two as well. This is some extensive damage! What on earth did you do?"

Red faced, Kiba muttered, "I punched my wall."

"Wha—" But Sakura had been teammates with two boys and knew how irrational they could be. Sometimes, she decided, it was better not to know. She began to gather her chakra for healing.

"What are you doing?"

"Idiot, I am a medic ninja, I am going to mend your hand."

Oh, right. Kiba had forgotten that Sakura was a medic now, and probably one of the best ones in Konoha, aside from the Hokage. And now that she was helping him, Kiba couldn't help but to recognize what an opportunity this was. If anyone knew what he should do about Sasuke, it was Sakura. He remembered that they had even sort of dated for a while. Everyone had thought that was the end of it and that they were going to get married soon after. (Ino had cried for days). But, with no warning and rather quickly, they split it off. More surprisingly than the split was the fact that it had been so amiable—everyone had known how much Sakura loved Sasuke, but she had seemed OK, maybe even happy with the break-up.

"Hey, Sakura, are you busy?"

"I am, I'm sorry. I have to heal some baka's hand. He punched a wall." Kiba blushed.

"And that baka thanks you, he does… and is hoping you would get some coffee or food with him after you are finished."

Sakura did a double take. Was Kiba coming on to her? He may be gorgeous now that he was older, but she was not interested. At all.

"Kiba, if you are asking me on a date, then I need to—"

"I'm not asking you on a date, I need to… I need to ask you about Sasuke."

Oh. He wanted to talk about Sasuke. Sakura was mostly relieved (Kiba? Gross.) but a little annoyed—why didn't he want to ask her out? (even though her answer would be no!) He wanted to talk about…Sasuke. She had known they had gotten close. During the mission, they had pulled a lot of strings to spend time together at the end. In fact, Sasuke had shown more interest in Kiba than he had shown in…well… anyone. It was something that secretly made her slightly jealous. And now the boy wanted her to talk about the mysterious Uchiha that was her teammate and friend. Still, Sakura knew Sasuke had been injured, and more importantly he was always emotionally unstable when it came to his brother—it was no time for her to be selfish and try (vainly) to keep Sasuke to herself.

"I…I guess I can spare an hour or two. There, your hand is fixed. Don't pick up heavy things, play too hard, train or do anything at all strenuous with it for the next two days, understood?"

Two days was a lot, but his hand did feel better, so Kiba nodded his agreement.

"So…where do you want to go?"

"Lets go to my apartment, Kiba, I was on my way there anyway. I can fix some tea, if you'd like."

"Hn."

Sakura stood up and offered a hand to help Kiba stand. He held one up, ready.

"Your other hand, baka. That one is healing, remember?"

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A/N: Revised a bit, but not much. Just grammar and spelling and such.


	11. Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

A/N: Nissie—I do write quite fast. I took a semester off from school, and so after work I have a bit of time on my hands. But I don't even really have this fully planned out, I am just writing where the story takes me. Also, in general, this is going to have a lot of dialogue, which is a weak point of mine. Revised!

Thank you so much to everyone who is reading. 3 Tell all of your friends and pimp my story out!

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There was a slight hint of jasmine in the air. Kiba's nose could pick up before they even entered Sakura's apartment and after they were inside the odor became very pungent to him.

"Sakura, your apartment smells wonderful but, uh…too strong." He tapped the side of his nose with a finger and fortunately, Sakura understood.

"I'm so sorry, I was burning incense earlier. Let me open some windows." As she moved around the living room toward the windows, Kiba took a seat on her couch. Now that he was here, he wasn't sure where to begin talking.

"Coffee or tea?" She was already on her way to the tiny kitchen.

"Tea, please." Normally he hated tea, but coffee had started the entire ordeal with Sasuke and the incident still left a bitter taste in his mouth. While she was busy in the kitchen, Kiba took the opportunity to look at her living space. He realized he had never been inside of her apartment. Really, he and Sakura had never interacted much. Their groups were so different and, aside from the interest Hinata had in Naruto and Kiba's own ongoing feud with the blond shinobi, the two teams rarely dealt with each other.

The apartment was clean and feminine, with flowers in vases and the walls painted a faint shade of pink. Not at all Kiba's taste, but he could see how it fit her. On a table next to where he was seated where picture frames filled with pictures of her family and her teammates. One was a picture of Sasuke and Sakura. Kiba picked it up and held it in his lap, studying Sasuke's cool and measured face, his slouch and his hands shoved deep in his pockets. Sasuke didn't even look aware that a picture was being taken, his eyes looking out into some unseen distance. Judging by her face, Kiba guessed the photo had been taken when Sakura and Sasuke had been dating. There was something familiar about the way the photograph was taken. It felt as if Sakura had been desperately trying to get his attention, had filled the picture with the love she had, and had finally settled on taking it anyway, regardless of Sasuke's distance. She was smiling, forcing the image of a couple, but he… he was miles away from her.

"We have tea now." Sakura had come in behind him and set a teapot and two cups on the coffee table. Easing into the seat next to him, she noticed he was looking at the picture. Her heart sank just a little at the reminder of the failed relationship.

"He didn't want to take that picture. Later I thought maybe it was because he knew we weren't going to work out, and didn't want any reminders of the relationship." Her voice was sad but honest.

"If you don't mind my asking, why didn't you two work out? Everyone knew how in love you were with him. We thought you two would be together forever."

Sakura cleared her voice to steady it. "We didn't work out because Sasuke's heart was never in it. It was maybe a matter of convenience, or comfort gone too far…but even though he tried, he couldn't love me like I loved him. But…He couldn't talk to me, or hold me or…touch me."

"You two never…?" Kiba was too embarrassed to finish the question.

"No. We never even came close. He was too stiff with me. I couldn't ever crack him, breach his walls."

"Has he ever…?"Maybe he was asking too much, but Kiba was curious at what kind of lover the Uchiha was.

"Yes, you know he has. Every girl that has slept with him has been heartbroken. They all cry about the same thing—it seemed like he didn't really want to be touching them. Perhaps I was spared that when he refused to sleep with me. I don't know if I could have handled…not being _wanted_ by him during the act."

The two sat in silence, uncomfortable with the conversation. Finally, Sakura broke the silence.

"You have broken through his wall, you know."

"No. I thought maybe I had, but I was mistaken. I'm on the outside, with you."

"Kiba, Sasuke has never reacted to anyone the way he has these past few months the way he has with you. The fight…even Naruto hasn't been able to provoke him so passionately since he returned from Orochimaru. And during the mission, he wanted to be with you all the time. When you weren't around…he would talk to me about you. You were all he wanted...to talk about." At this point, Sakura had to stop, her voice cracking and tears forming in her eyes.

Kiba sensed her distress and uncomfortably put an arm around her shoulders. He wasn't good at comforting people, especially not crying girls. He wanted to know what Sasuke had said about him, his stomach twisting with the excitement of knowing the other boy had been as into him as he had been with Sasuke, but Kiba knew it wasn't the right time.

"Sakura…don't cry…please, I really don't know what to do with crying girls!"

She laughed at that, snorting a little through her tears and running nose.

"You know, I am so jealous of you, Kiba!"

"Oh god, why would you ever be jealous of me? Sasuke just kicked me out of his apartment! He looked at me with absolute venom. He hates me now."

"If he hated you, he wouldn't care one way or the other. He would just ignore you like he used to ignore me. I am jealous _because_ he kicked you out. Don't you see? Because you bother him. Because he feels something, everything, for you. He never even really noticed I was there, even when we were together. Other than Naruto, you are the first person I've ever seen him react to, seen him care about. And unlike Naruto, he openly admitted to liking you."

"He _LIKES_ ME?" Kiba's heart began to beat wildly in his chest and he wasn't quite sure why.

"Not like _that_, Kiba, don't be a dumbass."

"Oh." And they sat there some more, his arm draped around her shoulder, her sniffing away tears that wouldn't stop coming. When she eventually did stop crying, he felt so awkward he could only think of leaving. He knew he had come here for advice, but the conversation let him know that Sakura was no better off than he at knowing how to approach the Uchiha.

"Thank you for the tea, and for talking to me. I think I'll leave now, if that is Ok."

He got up to leave, but she grabbed his hand to stop him.

"Two more things, Kiba. First, Tsunade is going to give you both back your titles. Naruto pushed her to make you both chuunins again, and after everything that happened, she fully agreed. Second, you said Sasuke is pushing you away. Don't let him. I let him push me around and then I let him push me away and I lost him, and he needs someone right now. Not just anyone, either. He needs you, Kiba, but you will need to fight for him."

Not knowing how to answer, Kiba awkwardly reached down and gave Sakura a quick kiss on her cheek, then walked out the door.

As he left, Sakura replayed the conversation in her head. She kept thinking about the part where she had told Kiba Sasuke liked him.

"_Not like that_, _Kiba_, _don't be a dumbass." _Alone in her apartment, however, she couldn't help but to wonder. Why did Sasuke react so much to Kiba, both good and bad? Kiba seemed to make Sasuke…passionate. This revelation of the possibility flustered her so much she went to the hospital. Working with patients would help get her mind of the nagging feeling that maybe, when she had said that, she had been the dumbass.

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It had been a few days, and Kiba hadn't called. _I'm glad_, Sasuke thought, but that was a lie. He had been secretly hoping the dog boy would call, or show up at his door with Akamaru, and when it hadn't happened, his mood had darkened drastically. Each day he sent a note to Kakashi and his teammates saying he wasn't ready to train. But his strength had returned and he had been training alone, in the wood in the early morning. The training was intense, as Itachi seemed to appear everywhere Sasuke looked. Shuriken and kunai fell like rain from Sasuke's hands, embedding themselves deep in the targets, in the trees, the ground, everywhere that Sasuke caught a glimpse of Itachi's image.

This morning he had been training for four hours already. He had come out at two am, while Konoha was still sleeping. Training appealed to him more than sleep—when he slept, the nightmares came. The nightmares seemed to be entering every aspect of his life. He couldn't go to sleep without reliving the images Itachi's jutsu had put in his head. Seeing his friends, and god, Kiba, get sliced and cut apart every night made him feel worse than if he had not slept at all. There were other dreams, too, that were equally disturbing.

For the first time in his life, Sasuke was having dreams of a sexual nature. The part that scared him was that they weren't with Sakura, or girls from the village. They were with Kiba. He would dream that Kiba was not just giving him a bath, but was in the bath with him. He dreamed about touching Kiba, kissing him, lying in bed with him…Sasuke didn't know what these dreams meant. Surely he wasn't attracted to Kiba! And…it was ridiculous for Sasuke to believe that maybe Kiba returned the desire. Kiba thought they were just friends, and that is what they were…or what they would be, if Sasuke hadn't made the decision to end the relationship. _The only decision_, Sasuke thought. The dreams must just be his mind's way of torturing him with the pain of deliberately losing his closest friend. The desires the dreams brought and his body's response to the dreams, as well as the nightmares, were enough to avoid sleeping. So instead, here he was, training in the early morning air.

But training was not working the way he wanted it to. Now, even though his mind and body seemed focused, his thoughts kept slipping back to the images, or to the fight he had with Kiba. He had even begun to imagine himself cutting Kiba, and those images…those were the worst. It frightened him to know he was even capable of thinking about hurting someone so…so dear to him.

Shaking his head, Sasuke launched into another practice attack, throwing and twisting, kicking and punching at hundreds of imaginary foes. He became so involved he almost hit his teacher, Kakashi-sensei. However, the copy ninja was not someone who allowed himself to be hit, and he countered Sasuke's attack, twisting the boy's arm and pinning him to the ground in a movement too fast for a normal eye to follow.

"Sasuke, your focus is off. If you fight in a blind rage, you will never see your opponent set up his finishing moves."

An image of him thrusting the kunai into Itachi, only to watch his brother disappear in a poof of smoke, flashed in Sasuke's mind. He hadn't seen those finishing moves until it had been too late.

"Shut up, old man. Shouldn't you be whittling or playing cards or whatever it is old people do?"

With his mask on, Sasuke couldn't see the grin, but Kakashi's one visible eye let him know his sensei was amused.

"Care to test your luck with this 'old man'?"

"Are you sure you want to spar? I wouldn't want you to break a hip or anything."

"Enough, Sasuke. Let us begin. Remember, keep your focus. Because of your mocking, I won't go easy on you."

Again, Sasuke saw Itachi, heard his voice saying those exact words: _I won't go easy on you_.

He readied himself in an offensive stance. Kakashi just stood and waited.

Launching himself into an attack, Sasuke focused on trying to move into the copy ninja's blind spot. Because Kakashi only had one eye exposed, he had a large area that was theoretically blind to him. But try as he did, Sasuke could never make it past Kakashi's front guard.

Panting and stepping back after the first assault, Sasuke was frustrated. He wasn't even close to beating his teacher…so he couldn't be close to beating his brother. He switched on his Sharingan.

"So you are playing with Sharingan, eh? Fine with me, I'll even the score." With that, Kakashi pushed up his forehead protector, exposing his own one Sharingan eye.

Sasuke attacked again. With his Sharingan, he could see Kakashi's movements better, memorizing the way his teacher moved. He knew his teacher was also doing this, and that point was made when he realized they were matching punches, kicks and blocks perfectly. It was like Sasuke had been fighting a mirror.

Enraged, he pushed harder. He had to beat his teacher, he just had to. If he didn't…then what point was there to his life? It felt like his purpose came down to this fight: beat Kakashi-sensei, then he could beat Itachi. A flurry of blows were blocked and matched, the pace and intensity of the fight quickly picking up. It was no longer sparring—Sasuke was out for blood and he was out for the win.

After fighting for what seemed like hours, Sasuke could feel his muscles beginning to shut down. He had pushed too hard and now he was feeling the fatigue, while his teacher seemed to be fine.

"DAMNIT!" Sasuke screamed and pulled back. "WHY THE HELL CAN'T I HIT YOU?"

Concern was in Kakashi's eyes. He and Sasuke sparred often, but it had never been like this. Something was seriously, seriously wrong, but he couldn't put his finger on it.

"Relax, Uchiha. Your strength is there. But you aren't focusing. You are letting your emotions control your fight." Kakashi paused for a moment, searching for his next words. "Speaking of controlling emotions, what is wrong? Kiba said you haven't spoken to him, or anyone, since you woke up."

"Leave me alone, there is nothing to talk about."

"Sasuke, you know I've met Itachi before. I've been under his jutsu. I barely survived."

Kakashi was trying to help, but it only pissed off Sasuke more. Another reminder that his brother almost killed his teacher—and he couldn't even come close to beating his teacher. He was so weak, just like Itachi said.

"Old man, I asked you to leave me alone. I'm going for a walk."

With that, Sasuke jumped into the trees and used his remaining chakra to launch himself away. Kakashi let him go for the time being. Sakura had told him about how Sasuke had bonded with Kiba…maybe he was the wrong person to be pushing Sasuke.

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Akamaru and Kiba were standing outside of Sasuke's door.

"I know, Aka, I will knock. Just give me a fucking second."

Akamaru rolled his eyes, knowing that his master was stalling. It had taken days of whining to even persuade Kiba to come back to the apartment. But he had been tired of watching Kiba mope, tired of listening to Kiba talk about Sasuke. It had been time for action and here they were, and yet Kiba was holding back.

Aka nipped firmly at his master's ankle.

"Fuck, that hurt! Fine, fine, I'm knocking!" Glaring at the dog, Kiba raised his fist and banged on the door.

There was no answer.

After a couple of seconds, Kiba banged again, louder.

"Sasuke, open the door. You have been avoiding me for too long!"

Still no answer.

Kiba turned to his dog. "He isn't home. Do you think he is with Sakura?"

Just for kicks, Kiba banged one last time with both fists, long and hard, rattling the wooden door in its frame.

As he turned to leave, Kiba's sensitive ears heard the footsteps behind the door. Frustrated, Kiba pretended to be walking off, making his own footsteps grow lighter as he gently put his feet down, and then standing still. Aka understood and did not move. A latch in the door clicked, and Kiba heard the handle turning. Whipping around, he slammed his body into the door, shoving it open and tumbling inside the familiar apartment.

"Goddamnit Kiba, what are you doing here?" The force of the door being shoved open had knocked Sasuke on the floor. Next to him, disheveled and flat on his face, was Kiba.

The dog boy rolled onto his side and grinned mischievously.

"Sorry about that, I just thought your door must be stuck, seeing as you weren't 'able' to answer it until you thought I had gone."

"I hoped you _had_ gone." Sasuke's face was like a stone wall.

Getting up, Kiba stood and helped Sasuke stand.

"Why are you doing this?" He murmured, looking the Uchiha in the eyes. Sasuke averted his gaze and began to walk back into the apartment.

"Kiba, you are breaking and entering, I could get you into serious trouble for this offense."

Aka trotted in and used his nose to close the door. Kiba began to follow Sasuke.

"Sasu, please look at me." But the other boy kept walking, forcing Kiba to jump over the couch to grab hold of him, turning him around.

"Sasuke! God, why are you doing this? Talk to me!" Kiba was growling and Aka's ears pricked, hearing his master's distress.

Sasuke reached up and disdainfully removed Kiba's hands from his shoulders. He then stepped back and stared down the Inuzuka.

"There is nothing for us to talk about."

Kiba felt deeply hurt as he had watched Sasuke remove his hands, acting like Kiba had some sort of contagious disease. His hands burned from Sasuke's touch. He didn't want to, but he could feel tears forming in his eyes. The coldness in Sasuke's stare…it cut through Kiba's heart. He had hoped his friend was going to be happy to see him after so many days, but Sasuke was staring at him like… like Kiba was Itachi.

And in a second, Sasuke's Sharingan activated, because for Sasuke, he really did see Itachi standing in front of him.

Kiba sensed the change in Sasuke and glanced the Sharingan, feeling his chest fill with fear. On instinct, Kiba tackled Sasuke, sending them both hurtling painfully to the floor. During the fall, Kiba's head crashed into a nearby table, creating a small gash. On the floor, struggling and bleeding all over the Uchiha, Kiba growled loudly. He felt Aka move close, prepared to help defend his master.

"FUCK, SASUKE, STOP!" Kiba punched his friend across the face. "STOP FIGHTING ME! STOP PUSHING ME AWAY!"

The punch broke Sasuke out of his vision. He saw it was Kiba, not Itachi, sitting on top of him. He felt the heat of Kiba's body and felt Kiba's weight on his stomach. His hands had been on the other boy's chest, trying to push him off. Now all that they weren't pushing, he could feel the hard muscles, smooth under his fingertips. Something stirred in his stomach and his groin, disregarding the pain in his jaw from where Kiba's fist had landed. His heart began to race and his breathing sped up. _Oh God_, Sasuke realized. _I am getting turned on by this_, and if Kiba remained where he was, well, he would soon know exactly how turned on Sasuke was.

Pushing hard and rolling away, Sasuke crouched, hiding his erection. He had managed to get away before Kiba had felt it. He looked at his friend, also crouched on the floor. Kiba had blood flowing down his cheek and a very confused look on his face.

"Sasu—_what_ exactly is going on?"

A deep flush crept up Sasuke's neck. Kiba couldn't know about his desire.

"Please leave."

"No. You can't push me away. We are too far along for you to push me away, and you know it. Just let me help, please. Sasuke, don't do this. Don't do it to me." Now Kiba really was crying, the tears mixing the blood that was beginning to dry on his skin.

His heart hurt, looking at the beautiful crying boy in front of him. Sasuke could feel it in his heart, feel the urge to go over and hold and soothe his friend, to open up. The flood of emotion, about their relationship, about his desires, about the nightmares and seeing Itachi and the visions all the time, it pounded and pushed. He was about to break, he could feel it. He could feel his hands beginning to tingle with the desire to grab a hold of the gorgeous Inuzuka and drop his façade. The words began to work their way out of his heart, up his throat, and he opened his mouth…

But nothing came out. With every ounce of reserve he had left, Sasuke steeled himself like the Uchiha he was. Looking away (how could he be resolved looking at that face!), he clenched his teeth and managed to mutter,

"Kiba, we are done here. Get out of my apartment—now."

Kiba didn't move, but Akamaru moved over and grabbed his master's sleeve in his teeth.

"Please…Please Sasuke, no…you don't mean it…" but Kiba allowed himself to be pulled to the door.

Sasuke turned his back, and Kiba took it to mean that it really was over. He didn't matter to Sasuke, and inside it felt as if his heart would break and he would die right there on the spot.

"Go." Sasuke's voice was strained but firm.

With one last glance, Kiba slid out of the apartment with his pet. Because his back was turned, Kiba couldn't see that Sasuke was crying as well.

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A/N: Whew, a long chapter for me. Again, this is a rough draft. And as always, if something seems too far-fetched or OOC, please let me know. I am very, very open to your suggestions! 3


	12. Chapter 12

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

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_What the hell is wrong with you?_ Sasuke sat on his floor, mentally beating himself up. He wasn't sure how much time had passed since Kiba had left. Watching the Inuzuka walk out and hearing him cry had almost been too much for Sasuke to bear, and he had borne a lot in his years. He was fucking it all up, everything. Sasuke could hear his brother laughing at the whole situation, mocking him for caring so much for the other boy. He could hear Itachi shaming him for being turned on by Kiba.

_And what the hell was that? Do you suddenly like boys now? Kiba would think you were disgusting, you pervert._ These thoughts articulated what Sasuke feared…that Kiba would think he was disgusting. Now, not only did he put his friend's life in danger by caring so much about him, but his friend would be revolted if he knew the truth. Sasuke wasn't really sure what the truth was because these feelings and thoughts were so new. He had grown up with boys around him his entire life and not once before had any of them turned him on. Like any other guy, Sasuke could tell when a fellow male was decent looking (or in Kiba's case, incredibly hot), but none of them turned him on. _None of them ever made me hard--_ but Kiba had.

Of course, thinking about him made him realize that no girls had ever turned him on, either. Sakura, the other girls, they had all tried. Aphrodisiacs, candles, even one girl had handcuffed him to a bed and spent hours teasing his body. Now Sasuke realized that none of it had ever made him hot. Hot the way he had felt with Kiba pinning him down.

Shivering, Sasuke hugged his knees to him. The truth was, he was scared. After all the years of the arrogant façade, the mask that he never took off for anyone, he no longer knew himself. At this moment, he wasn't sure if he wanted Kiba the way his body seemed to want the boy. He wasn't sure who his real friends were. He wasn't sure about his skills, or his ability to one day kill his brother and exact the revenge he had spent his whole life focused on. Sasuke had been chasing his dream of becoming the avenger for so long and so hard that it had become his priority. Kiba and all of the emotions that came with Kiba were foreign to the Uchiha. _Foreign, and a burden. Kiba is standing in way of my job as the Avenger._ The thought broke his heart inside but he knew it to be true. And Kiba would always be in Konoha, occupying Sasuke's thoughts and making him this scared and confused. Kakashi had said he needed to be more focused and that must have meant he needed to remove any and all distractions.

His mind made up, Sasuke stood up and began doing what he knew he needed to do.

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"Oy, dog boy! Wait up, I need to ask you something!"

Kiba had been hoping to avoid the ninja—he and Akamaru had smelled the noisy ninja and had been trying to hide—but Naruto had seen them and there was nothing he could do but wait for the blond boy.

"What is it, baka? I am on my way to train with Hinata and Shino and I don't want to be late." Kiba continued to walk, and Naruto moved next to him, keeping pace.

"Sasuke has missed practice four days in a row, and he isn't at home. Sakura had the weird idea that _you_ might know where he was." Naruto's nose wrinkled up and Kiba couldn't tell if it was in confusion or distaste. Naruto had been Sasuke's best friend and might be jealous of the new friendship Kiba and Sasuke had. But Naruto was also very dense, and he may just not know why the Inuzuka would know something about a boy who, until the last mission, had nothing to do with him. And besides, if Naruto was feeling jealous, he could stop feeling that way. Sasuke had made it very clear to Kiba that there was no friendship and that, if anything, they were worse off than when everything had begun.

"He is home, he just isn't answering his door."

"No, he isn't home. I went inside and the place looks like he hasn't been there for a little while. So he isn't with you?"

"No—" Kiba was about to insult Naruto's slowness when Kakashi-sensei showed up in front of them.

"Kakashi-sensei! I am glad you showed up, I can ask you, too!"

"Ask me what?"

"Have you seen Sasuke? He has missed training for four days now, and Kiba hasn't seen him either!"

Kakashi's one exposed eye narrowed.

"Sasuke is missing? I sparred with him a week ago, but I haven't seen him since. Naruto, why don't you check with some of the other teams and see if they know anything?"

"Hai!" And with that, Naruto sped off into the village, leaving Kiba with Kakashi.

"Kiba, now that Naruto is gone, I would like to speak with you."

Kiba was shocked that the infamous copy-ninja would have anything to say to him, so wide eyed he simply nodded.

"When Sasuke and I last sparred, he seemed very…disturbed. Unable to focus and shaken up. Basically, he was not at all like the cool and calm Sasuke I know. Sakura came to talk to me and mentioned that you and Sasuke seemed to have an, uh, how do I say this…_connection_."

Kiba winced and turned red with embarrassment. He vividly remembered Sakura's envy over his 'connection' with the silent Sharingan user.

"I was wondering if you knew if anything was wrong with Sasuke?"

All of this talk and questions sparked Kiba's interest-- and his worry.

"Hn. Sasuke has not been at all like the way he was before we met Itachi. I…I had thought he and I were friends. He had seemed so genuine. But ever since he woke up, he has been so cold and distanced. I thought it was just post-stress from fighting his brother, so I gave him a little space. But Sakura had told me to try to talk to Sasuke again, and when I did…he…he made it _very_ clear that he and I are no longer friends of any sort."

"Well, his actions seem strange, but Sasuke has always pushed people away…it could just be the stress, as you say…"

Kakashi looked confused when Akamaru began to bark excitedly at Kiba, whose face instantly became upset.

"Why the hell didn't you say that before?" Kiba yelled at Aka, who promptly growled a gentle warning in return.

"Well, what did he say?" Kakashi's own ninja dogs spoke to him when he summoned them, but he was unable to understand what Aka had been barking about.

"Aka said that when Sasuke and I last fought, he could sense a serious unbalance in Sasuke's chakra and mental stability. He said that it seemed like maybe Sasuke was seeing things, because he was going to attack me with Sharingan, and that when we left Sasuke's chakra was raging out of control!"

"This confirms my fears. Kiba, I read the report you filed about Itachi's attack, but Sasuke never filled in after you had passed out. Itachi's Sharingan is different. It is Mangekyou…it is extremely dangerous and very rare. Only an actual bloodline successor may possess it, and only at a great cost—the user must kill his best friend in order to obtain it. Not much is known about it, but… I think perhaps Itachi has done something in Sasuke's mind, something that may be blurring the lines between reality and the hallucinations Itachi forced Sasuke to see."

Fear gripped hard at Kiba's heart and suddenly he found it difficult to breathe. Finding his voice, he whispered, "You think he has left the village, don't you?"

Kakashi's one eye looked away, confirming Kiba's suspicions.

"I have to go after him."

"Hn. I will as well, with Naruto and Sakura and other teams. We will search north, east and west. You search to the south with your team."

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A/N: Ok, Ok, I took forever with the revisions. But I promise there will be a new super duper installment tomorrow that will rock your socks off! And remember, if you like my fiction, spread the word! I am a first-time author.

3

-Jenny-


	13. Chapter 13

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

A/N: Ok, so here it is. I ran into my first case of writer's block (eek!) but now I am ready to start spinning this story again. I will fully admit to getting bummed because I wasn't getting reviews and I thought only two or three people were reading my story, but really, I am proud of this story whether people read it or not, and I really want to finish it. Thanks to everyone for being so patient.

000

"And so now he has run away, and it is all my fault, so we have to find him." Kiba finished his story to his teammates as they walked, searching for clues about Sasuke. The years had made the team close. Although Kiba never fully connected to Shino and Hinata the way he had with Sasuke, he trusted them and knew he could share with them. And so he had, spilling out everything from the fight in Konoha, to the Hokage demoting them, to the mission and the way he and Sasuke had bonded, to the Itachi's attack and finally to Sasuke's harsh words and behavior.

His two teammates were wise beyond their years, and listened to their friend as he filled them in about this new and abrupt mission. Shino was shocked, though no one knew it because his sunglasses and high coat collar hid his emotions well. The last time Kiba had spoken about Sasuke, he had been filled (and rightfully so) with anger. But now…the Inuzuka was different. And not just in his changed attitude towards the Uchiha. It was everything about him.

Shino's expert eyes noted everything, like the way Kiba was standing up straighter. His teammate used to always slouch around, making jokes and not taking things seriously. But now he was walking tall and straight, focused. His attitude had changed and now Kiba was so much more mature, as if he had grown up ten years in the little time since the whole ordeal had begun. Most importantly, and perhaps most confusingly, was Kiba's body language when he spoke to them about Sasuke. While he had been reminiscing about the close friendship that formed during the mission, Shino had listened to him and saw how Kiba's voice became softer, filled with caring and…how he blushed. Kiba had blushed deeply, though he seemed unaware of it, when describing all the wonderful traits of Sasuke to his teammates. Shino wasn't sure what to make of the blush or the dropped voice. Had Kiba been describing a girl, Shino would have automatically assumed the Inuzuka was in love. But this was Sasuke he was talking about, a moody and cold boy and…well, Sasuke was a boy! Shino shook his head slightly. He would need to think more about it before he jumped to any conclusions.

While Shino pondered, Hinata knew already. She could see it in everything Kiba did. When he had come to them in a panic, talking wildly about how they had to get on the road fast, they had to find Sasuke, she had known. Kiba cared a lot about the few people in his life. Like his dog Akamaru, Kiba was passionately loyal to his friends. But she knew that if she or Shino were missing, they would never have elicited this rabid response from him. He would have been worried, yes, and eager to get out, but he would have done so in a sane and collected way. But with Sasuke, Kiba had been out of his mind and it wasn't until Shino had punched Kiba that the boy had come to his senses and begun to pull himself together. Hinata knew what it was like to be in love, and she could see the signs all over Kiba. It was a little strange to her that it was Sasuke. After all, she didn't think anyone would have seen either boy, so masculine and dominating in their personalities, falling in love with a boy, and certainly not with each other. But there it was, she supposed, and really, people thought she was crazy for loving Naruto, so who was she to judge? Now, more than anything, she just wanted to help her teammate and friend find his love. She wouldn't mention it, though…Kiba seemed to not even know he was in love himself.

"Kiba, I agree that we need to find Sasuke and find him fast. But in order to do so, you need to realize that you are not to blame for his running away. I am saying this as your teammate and not just as your friend. If your mind is clouded with guilt, we will never be able to find him. And if we did find him, you would hurt, not help our mission. So I repeat: Sasuke's running away was not your fault." Shino was concerned his teammate was out of his mind with guilt, and he needed Kiba to concentrate. Akamaru barked in agreement at his master.

"But it is my fault! If I hadn't been so pushing, if I hadn't tried to force him to talk to me, he probably would have come to it on his own—"

"Kiba-kun. It is not your fault. It was Itachi's." Hinata rarely spoke, so Kiba looked at her in surprise. But he also listened to her, and her words helped him to re-focus.

"Ok, I know splitting up is a bad idea, but I think we need to if we are going to find him before he gets too far. Hinata can use her Byuukagen, Shino, use your kikai, and Aka and I will smell him out. We can keep in constant touch over headset so we never get too far from each other. What do you guys think?"

Although he did not like, Shino couldn't help but to agree. It would go faster if they split up. He handed out the headsets he had in his bag, and each team member put one on.

"Ok. Remember, constant radio contact. If we don't find him tonight, we regroup and make new plans." Shino wanted to make sure nothing bad could happen. He was still thinking about Sasuke's emotional and mental state…and how Kiba might not be ready for it.

He had barely got the words off when Kiba and Akamaru jumped into the trees and began to speed off.

0 0 0 0 0

Hearing another twig snap, Sasuke whirled around, but there was nothing there. For hours he had been tracking Itachi, but there was no sign of him. A few days before, he had left Konoha, planning on camping and wandering outside of the village to get some air and clear his mind of the pain of losing Kiba. But on the second day, he had seen Itachi in the trees to the side of him. Filled with rage, he had begun to track his brother. It didn't matter to Sasuke whether or not he was ready to fight his sibling—what mattered was he couldn't let Itachi haunt his life anymore. Breaking off his relationship with Kiba had proven that. Until Itachi and he fought and one of them died, he would never be able to live a normal life. And so now he was in pursuit. But it was difficult. There were no signs of his brother anywhere—no campfire ashes, no footprints, no broken twigs or branches. Nothing. And yet Sasuke could swear he heard Itachi sometimes, or would catch a glimpse of the blue-black hair that ran in his family's genes. He would run over and stand confused when there was nothing there.

The only answer was that Itachi was playing with him. His brother was trying to mess with his mind, to wear him down and then attack him. Or maybe Itachi thought Naruto was with Sasuke. If that was a case, his brother was in for a big surprise when Sasuke finally caught up with him, because he planned on fighting to the death—Itachi's or his own.

Seeing a movement in the side of his vision, Sasuke burst off in pursuit.

0 0 0 0 0

Akamaru was barking, but Kiba didn't need to talk to Aka to know the dog had picked up Sasuke's scent, for his own sensitive nose had picked it up as well. Running, they both chased the faint smell of the Uchiha. It was a couple of days old, so occasionally the boy or dog would need to stop to get their bearings, but they were sure of it. Kiba was surprised—he thought that Sasuke would have gone further from Konoha, particularly if he had been gone for four days. Still, his heart beat faster—he could find Sasuke, and work it all out! Even though their last encounter still caused his insides to ache, Kiba just wasn't ready to give up. He kept hearing Sakura's voice in his head, telling him to fight for the Uchiha.

Kiba was ready for that fight. He wasn't willing to lose Sasuke.

They had been running for miles when the wind picked up and suddenly Sasuke's scent became much clearer.

"Shino, Hinata, I think I've found him. He has to be a few miles away at the most."

"Good, Kiba, wait where you are, we are on our way."

"I'm going after him."

"Kiba, don't go after him. I repeat, wait for us. As your team leader, I am ordering you to wait."

Shino didn't often use his authority as team leader with Kiba and Hinata, but he knew he needed to now.

"I'm sorry, Shino. I have to go and talk to him alone."

"Kiba, no, just hang on, we will be there in an hour, just wai—"

But Kiba had shut off his headset and was already running with Aka after his friend.

0 0 0 0 0

A/N: Suspense. You gotta love it.


	14. Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto

A/N: Some warnings:

1. This fic is not even close to being completed. I am about half-way through, I think. I knew I wanted my first fic to be a longer one, and this has been an undertaking. I am saying this so that you can give me tips if you want, so you won't get scared when you read this chapter and really, just so you know.

2. Like some other chapters, this gets pretty gorey. Just a heads up.

3. It also starts getting very angsty from here on for a while. But I promise, there will be some happy bits.

0 0 0 0 0

Sasuke crouched to the ground and removed a Kunai from his holster. Apparently Itachi had decided his games were up and came looking for him as well.

They stared at each other. Sasuke shifted his weight on to his heels, ready for Itachi's strike, but his brother just stood there.

"Sasuke, what are you doing out here?"

Sasuke looked at his brother like he was crazy—what did he mean?

"I am out here looking for you. You have been plaguing my life and I am ready for it to end."

"_I've _been plaguing your life? What do you mean?" This pissed Sasuke off. What in the hell was Itachi playing at? It was obvious his brother was not through playing with him and this was just another one of his mind games.

"I'm tired of you and I'm tired of this shit. Why do you do it? Why do you keep fucking with me?"

"Sasuke, I would never fuck with you, you know that." Itachi's eyes had a wicked and amused look to them.

It was too much for Sasuke. He was tired of it all, of Itachi, of his hope of being the Avenger, of living with all the guilt and sorrow. He was so consumed with hate for his brother that there wasn't any room in him for anything else, and it was eating away at him. Kiba had shown him that. Kiba, beautiful Kiba, who had wanted in, had wanted to help, had wanted to care for Sasuke… and Sasuke had been unable to let him in because of Itachi. He had hurt Kiba because of Itachi and Sasuke knew that if this didn't end now, he would slowly become Itachi, cold and uncompassionate, a killer.

He sprang at his brother. This time he wouldn't close his eyes or look away for a second. This time it was either his brother or himself going down, but there wouldn't be a chance for a clone.

Sasuke punched and kicked, slicing his kunai through the air. Itachi blocked all of his attacks, but never made an offensive move. Sasuke realized that Itachi must be fucking with him still. The Itachi in front of him was slower. Sasuke landed a punch. He had never handed such a blow on his brother. His knee came up as he launched himself in the air, catching his brother under the jaw. Itachi went flying back and landed hard on the ground.

Sasuke paused. What was going on? He was winning! Against his instincts, he began to get excited. This was it. There hadn't been a chance for his brother to produce a clone, and this time Sasuke made sure his Sharingan could verify it hadn't been a fake from the beginning. But he could see Itachi breathing (slowly) and bleeding (a lot). Pride warmed Sasuke all over—his anger was the key, he realized. Kakashi had been wrong—his anger was fueling him, pushing him and it gave him the edge.

When Itachi began to slowly stand again, Sasuke didn't waste the opportunity. He launched again, but something held him back. He couldn't see it, but it felt as if something was holding onto the back of his shirt. Then there was a sharp pain in his leg. Looking down, blood started to flow from a wound. How was Itachi doing this? Sasuke's Sharingan didn't see any clones or strange chakra, only empty air. He heard Itachi say something under his breath and the pain, the hand on his shirt disappeared.

"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING, ITACHI?" And Sasuke charged. He tackled his brother, pinning him to the ground. The anger surged through him, mixed with adrenaline, making him stronger than he had ever felt. He gathered chakra in his fists and began to pound his brother, who weakly tried to defend himself from the flurry of blows.

0 0 0 0 0

"Goddamnit, where is he? My kunai can't find him anywhere! Hinata, try to see again."

Hinata looked wearily at Shino. They had been searching desperately for Kiba, and she had used a lot of chakra already with her Byuukagen. Reaching a hand up, she wiped the sweat from her brow. She was just as worried as Shino, and so she had to try.

"Byuukagen!" She looked, and looked, but she was tired and her chakra was waning. There was nothing she could see. Except…what looked like a blur charging toward them. It looked familiar…

"Akamaru!"

The dog bounded up to them a minute later, frothing at the mouth. He had obviously been running hard to find them.

"God, Aka, what is it?" But Aka just barked and began running away again. They followed fast.

Shino was very worried—Aka never acted like that. Where the hell was Kiba?

0 0 0 0 0

It seemed like he had been punching his brother forever. It had been a while since Itachi's arms had fallen, no longer possessing the strength to defend. In fact, it had been a while since Itachi had moved. Sasuke looked down at a face that was barely recognizable. He looked at his fists, sore, broken from the force of his punches and covered in blood. His face, his shirt…all covered in blood.

It was time to make sure though. The punching had been cathartic while he was doing it, but seeing himself covered in Itachi's blood…Sasuke felt like a monster. Never had he imagined it like this. In his mind it had been an epic battle to the end, both brothers pitted equally in a fight to the death. This had been…easy. He had lost control, had lost any concept of time, and looking down at the battered body below him…this kind of slow death was something only Itachi would have done.

Overwhelmed, Sasuke began to cry. There was nothing else for him to do. It was only the second time he had cried since his brother killed his family and the tears felt foreign as they ran down his cheeks. His father's voice rang in his head, telling him how "Uchiha's never cry, they never show emotion." What would his father think now if he were alive, now that he had murdered his own brother (_it was revenge, revenge isn't murder!)_, now that he had, in a sense, tortured his enemy to death? Would his father be proud of him (_You were never as good as Itachi_)? Would he be ashamed that Sasuke was crying? There were so many emotions (_Oh god, it is finally over_) running through him (_I just killed my own brother, I just murdered Nii-san) _and it was too much (_you are just as cold-blooded as he was! Did you think you would feel better after you killed him?)_ for Sasuke to hold in.

Reaching beside him, Sasuke picked up the kunai he had dropped. Hands trembling, he raised it above his head. This time (_do it fast!)_ he would kill his brother, and he would end it with honor.

His hands began their race down, rushing to plunge the sharp steel into his brother's throat.

And then, they stopped. Confused, Sasuke tried again, until he realized that his strength was gone. He couldn't even move his arms.

What the hell was going on?

0 0 0 0 0

Heart racing, Shino breathed a sigh of relief. He had stopped the kunai just in time, right before it had plunged into Kiba's throat.

Beside him, Hinata collapsed and started to sob. He couldn't blame her, he wasn't even sure how to take in the scene.

They had followed Akamaru, racing through the forest. Aka kept barking in urgency and Shino had become very worried. Aka had stopped suddenly and Shino had almost tripped over him. Aka barked and growled, and Shino finally saw it. Hinata must have seen it at the same time, because she gasped.

In the clearing, Sasuke was punching Kiba's limp body. Shino assumed it was Kiba because of Akamaru, but in truth it was hard to tell. The face had been so bashed in and bloody it didn't look human.

Sasuke had stopped punching and slouched over, crying. Hinata and Shino had remained where they were, paralyzed by what they were seeing. It hadn't been until Sasuke reached for the kunai that Shino had reacted. Immediately he sent his kikai out to the boy, swarming over the Uchiha. For most people, being covered in bug would have freaked them out, but Sasuke kept moving as if he didn't see the insects racing along his limbs. Shino commanded the kikai to drain Sasuke, and quickly. The swarm ate the boy's chakra, ebbing away his strength and thankfully staying the hand that had been prepared to kill Kiba.

Sasuke was now struggling. Shino was confused—it really did seem like the boy did not see the kikai covering his body. In fact, is seemed as if Sasuke was continuing to try and move, regardless of his drained strength and chakra. If Shino continued to allow his insects to feed, it could kill Sasuke. Shino didn't know what to do.

Shino was so focused on Sasuke he did not see Hinata stand up and rush toward the struggling Uchiha.

0 0 0 0 0

Sasuke stared at his hands where they lay useless in his lap. _What the hell is going on?_ Fear was etched into every muscle fiber in his body. He kept waiting for whatever trick Itachi was playing to show itself. _Why can't I kill him?_ And he wanted to kill him. Even with all of his jumbled emotions, he knew he needed to finish it.

And then, much to his confusion, Hinata Hyuuga was in front of him. Tears were streaming down her face and her large moon-white eyes penetrated into him. Sasuke really didn't know what to think—why would Hinata be _here_, in front of him at this crucial moment in his life?

Faster than Sasuke would have guessed, Hinata's hand shot through the air and slapped him hard across his cheek. The pain jolted him, and he stared at her incredulously.

"Hinata, what the fuck is wrong with you? Why are you crying? Why are you here? I need to finish this!"

Though he did not know what to expect from the girl because the situation was just so bizarre, he was still shocked when Hinata's face filled with animosity. She slapped him again.

"H-how c-c-could y-y-ou? Y-you m-m-m-m-mmmonster!" The normal stuttering she suffered was exacerbated by her sobs.

Now he really didn't know what to think. _What the hell is she going on about, and at a time like this? Is she upset because I left Kiba?_

"Hinata, I don't know why you are here, and I don't think you understand. You need to get out of here—this is my brother, Itachi, and it is dangerous for you to be here! Go away and let me kill my brother!"

This set her back, confusion written all over her.

"S-s-sasuke…"

"God, Hinata, run! You could get hurt! Please… please let me do this."

Her eyes, so large and luminous, were filled with sympathy and extreme sorrow. The sorrow in those eyes tugged at Sasuke's heart and he knew then that something was very, very wrong about the situation.

"Hinata…what is it?"

But her tears kept coming, harder and harder, until her body was wrenching with sobs, making it impossible for her to speak.

Sasuke felt a solid hand on his shoulder. Whipping his head around, he saw Shino crouched next to him.

"Shino, what the hell is going on here? Why are you two here?" He couldn't see the Aburame's eyes, but when Akamaru stepped out alone behind the other boy, something clicked in Sasuke's mind.

"Where is Kiba?" The question was muttered softly, barely audible.

He already knew the answer. Suddenly, all Sasuke could feel was the cold, still body beneath him. He looked down, seeing himself covered in blood. Blood that was not Itachi's. The face below him might have been unrecognizable to most, but Sasuke saw the faint outline of disfigured red triangle tattoos on the cheeks.

Kiba.

"Oh my god…" He could feel something powerful starting to storm in him, but he wasn't sure what it was.

"Oh god, no… no, please no…" The force was twisting in his gut, grief and sorrow and every pain he had ever felt in his life, all collecting together, filling him.

Very rarely do Uchiha's cry. Sasuke could count the number of times he had cried in his life on one hand, and two of those times had been for this boy. As a single tear fell down his stoic cheek, Sasuke made a promise. _I will never shed another tear for you Kiba. You deserve better, you deserve for me to be strong._

Sasuke started to stand up and Shino let him. Shino just stared at the body of his teammate and Hinata's sobs could be heard in the back of his mind. He knew that he should do something, and he wanted to—he wanted to comfort Hinata and he wanted to kill Sasuke and more than anything he wanted to bring Kiba back, someway…anyway. But instead he just remained where he was, taking in the scene.

Moving away from the team, Sasuke thought he was going to explode. The pain felt almost like a tangible force inside of him, moving out to his limbs, into his head, making his head and his eyes throb. His vision was turning red and, frightened that he might lose his sight soon, moved quickly to do what he needed to do.

When he had first gone to Orochimaru, Kiba and the other rookies had come after him, trying to save them. When he returned and was ready, he heard their stories. Kiba's had been one of the most powerful for Sasuke to hear. This boy, this annoying, loud and immature boy had…had stabbed himself while fighting a far superior ninja. The ninja had been actually been a pair of brothers and one had fused himself with Kiba, his jutsu forcing them to share the same body. Kiba had recognized that in order to kill the brother…he had to kill himself. Sasuke couldn't think of many people he knew that would have been willing to take such a step of self-sacrifice.

Dropping to the ground, Sasuke picked up a discarded kunai. He had never known anyone as brave as Kiba. I have to be brave now, too. And, as the pain and burning in his body, in his head and his eyes became so immense he couldn't see or feel anything else, Sasuke raised his arms and quickly plunged the kunai into his own stomach.

And then there was no more pain.

0 0 0 0 0

A/N: Ok, waiting to here back from my beta tester and then I will revise the past two chapters. If you are worrying, this is not the end. In fact, this isn't the end by a long shot. Plenty more action and angst (and some intense yaoi) coming your way!


	15. Chapter 15

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

A/N: I know the last chapter was intense, sorry.

0 0 0 0 0

There wasn't much to be thankful for, but Shino was thankful they were close to the village. He and Hinata sped toward the front gate of Konoha with Sasuke and Kiba. It had taken a lot to get Hinata to carry Sasuke… she had been so bitter.

"He deserved to die, Shino. Even he knew it! So we should respect his wishes and leave him to die."

When she had said these words, it cut into Sasuke's heart, partially because Hinata had never spoken about anyone with such hate and partially because a part of him agreed with her. He had been tempted to leave the Uchiha, who had been losing blood fast, in the clearing. But even Hinata could not deny that Sasuke had said something about his brother, and everything was confusing, and most importantly a shinobi of the leaf should never leave behind his fellow ninjas, no matter what the circumstances were.

Hinata was carrying Sasuke because he was lighter than Kiba. _Or what is left of Kiba_. Shino felt bile rising in his throat as the dead weight of his teammate hung on his shoulders. The team had been together for years and, although Shino and Kiba were friends, the Aburame had never realized how much he cared for his canine-loving team mate until now. _Until he is gone_. With that thought, Shino sped up.

When they reached the front gate there was a squad of medic ninja waiting. Shino assumed Tsunade had known they were going after the Uchiha and had been planning on sending out reinforcements. The masked medics took away Kiba, but not before Shino heard one of them gasp at the state of the boy. Hinata threw Sasuke on the ground in front of them and ran in. Shino knew she needed to be alone for a little while, so he let her go.

Besides, his mission wasn't over yet—he needed to find the other teams and bring them back.

0 0 0 0 0

Sweat was beating on Tsunade's brow and threatened to fall in her eyes, but she couldn't stop what she was doing. Focusing harder, she worked on sending steady streams of chakra into Kiba's heart, trying to get it to beat again.

When the medic team had arrived at the hospital so quickly, Tsunade was glad. She had been expecting minor cuts and bruises, but Kiba and Sasuke whole and ready to listen to her. What she found however, gave her a shock.

In all of her years as a medic ninja, she had seen some pretty gruesome things. Legs and arms blown off by explosive tags, scarring or wounding jutsus and other such injuries. But nothing could have prepared her for the two boys. Kiba didn't even look like a person and Sasuke's chakra was so crazy and out of line (and fading fast) that for a moment, she didn't know what to do. It had been Shizune who had sprung to action.

A whirlwind of activity followed and now here she was. The Hokage had originally thought Kiba was dead, but then, as she was about to cover him with a sheet, she had seen his finger twitched. Medically she knew that very often corpses twitch and move after death at the nerves and muscles contract and die. But Kiba was one of her own nin, and she was unwillingly to let reason keep her from trying to save him.

It had only been a few minutes, but it felt like hours. To restart a heart required a large amount on steady chakra. Too little and the muscle couldn't be stimulated. Too much, and the shock permanently stopped it.

A bead of sweat rolled down into her eye, stinging it. Resisting the urge to raise a hand and wipe it away, Tsunade stayed focused.

_Please, Please let this work._

0 0 0 0 0

Shizune was finishing up with Sasuke. She had never really known the boy, only heard stories, but she was still confused and upset. Attempted suicides were not an injury she was ever happy to heal. Life in Konoha was so happy, even if it wasn't always peaceful. She was thankful she came with Tsunade to the village, a village that had welcomed her with open arms. Now she called Konoha home and could not imagine how any of its citizens couldn't be as happy as she was, and certainly not so unhappy as to attempt to end one's life.

The Uchiha's injuries were crazy and she wasn't sure what was going on with his body. The kunai wound had missed his vital organs and, although he had suffered major blood loss, she had been able to stabilize that part of him. It was the raging chakra that confused her. She could feel it like everyone else but couldn't see what was going on. She knew what she needed to do.

"Bring me a Hyuuga."

0 0 0 0 0

Neji walked into the room alone. Sasuke's body lay on the table. Normally the Hyuuga would have been happy to help a fellow ninja, and particularly Sasuke, for he had respected the boy's power and ability. But Shino had caught up with them to bring them back to the village and had filled in each team on what had happened in general terms. Both boys were hurt, he had said.

But when Neji had been asked to use his Byuukagen to see what was happening to Sasuke's chakra, he had asked Shino for the full story. Now, knowing the monster that Sasuke was… Neji was reluctant to help the boy.

He heard the door open behind him.

"Neji."

He turned and, seeing who it was, bowed.

"Hokage."

They both turned and looked at the Uchiha.

"This is the second time he has been unconscious in this hospital in a matter of months. Sasuke seems to never find a way to stay out of trouble."

"If I may speak freely—"

"You may."

"…This time it sounds like he brought the trouble himself." Neji spat out the words, filling them with his distaste.

"I disagree, Neji."

"Hokage, I am not one to judge a character too quickly. Sasuke has had many opportunities to redeem himself in my eyes and yet… I can't help but to come to the conclusion that he is a monster. The whole thing with Orochimaru--he had almost killed Naruto then, too. And now with Kiba… I don't see how I can help you. I don't want to help him. Hinata is heart broken and… " Neji didn't finish the sentence.

Tsunade turned toward him, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Neji, you are a good man and I know you are not speaking rashly. But I need you to understand too things. As a medic ninja, I have been forced to cure several people I did not wish to. It is part of the job. If I need your help, you may not pick and choose who you help and who you do not. It is your responsibility to help any and all people without discrimination. Also… I know it is very hard for you and Hinata and everyone else to try and understand, knowing what Sasuke did to Kiba. God, think about how his parents must be feeling right now. But please hear me. If what I suspect is correct, Sasuke is not himself and did not have any intention of hurting Kiba. I think something it wrong in his mind and that is what I am asking you to look for."

With that, she turned and left the room, closing the door behind her.

What she had said made sense, but it didn't help Neji want to help anymore. Still, Neji had always been a professional and took his job as ninja seriously. So he stepped forward, took a deep breath and activated his Byuukagen.

What he saw shocked him. Normally a person's chakra flowed throughout the body in a pattern similar to the cardiovascular system. But Sasuke's chakra was leaping and flaming everywhere… and he had a large amount of chakra concentrated in his eyes. Neji had never seen anything like it and was not sure what was causing the severe fluxes in chakra. He was so engulfed in watching Sasuke that he didn't hear Tsunade enter the room again.

"What do you see?"

If he was surprised, he didn't show it.

"His chakra is completely out of control. There is no flow, only spontaneous bursts. The strangest part is how much of it seems to be gathering in his eyes. I don't know what is causing it."

"I think I do. He should wake up in another day, once his body adjusts. If my assumption is correct, Sasuke will be completely back to normal when he wakes up."

"What will you do to him when he wakes?"

"We'll see when the time comes."

0 0 0 0 0

As Tsunade predicted, Sasuke woke up the next day with normal chakra and a massive headache. Those were just the physical symptoms, however. Inside, Sasuke thought he might still be dying.

I killed Kiba.

His stomach ached where he had stabbed himself. Apparently he was not only a failure at killing his brother and protecting his closest friend, he also couldn't even end his own life correctly.

There were flowers next to his bed in the hospital room, so he new Sakura would be coming around to visit soon. He couldn't believe she didn't hate him as well. He hated himself, and after what he had done… he didn't deserve a friend.

"Good morning, S-s-sasuke."

He recognized her voice and was surprised she wasn't killing him.

"Hinata."

"I…I d-don't quite k-know what I'm d-doing here."

Sasuke just looked out the window. He hurt so bad, and her presence brought such shame that he wished he could implode on himself.

"S-S-sasuke…?"

"Hn."

"I… I…" she paused, taking in a deep breath. "I forgive you."

He glared at her, confused.

"Hinata, I killed your teammate. How can you forgive me?

She blushed a deep red, her brow furrowed.

"It wasn't your fault, Sasuke. And I was hoping you could forgive me."

She was saying all of this while looking him in the eyes and not stuttering, so he knew it was no joke.

"What the hell do you want me to forgive you for? I am the murderer!"

"No, you aren't a murderer. I am asking your forgiveness because I wanted to let you die, and if Shino had not forced me to bring you back, I would have."

The Hyuuga's admission was a lot for Sasuke, but really…he couldn't blame her. He would have wanted the same thing.

"You and Shino are better people than me. I should have been left to die, after killing someone so dear to you…to me."

Hinata stared at him, her large silver eyes taking everything in. Even without her Byuukagen she could see the torture Sasuke was feeling. She could see how badly he was beating himself up inside, and it helped her feel reassured. Tsunade was right…Sasuke wasn't a monster like she had thought. He deserved to know.

"You can't be a murderer—"

"I am, Hinata, I am a—"

"Shut up. You can't be a murderer because you didn't kill anyone."

"bloody monste—WHAT?"

"Kiba is alive."

For a minute, Sasuke actually thought his heart stopped beating. What…what did she even mean? How could this be? There were too many thoughts, too many emotions, too many everything. Nothing could form in his head, and he felt quite delirious.

"H-he's… He's alive?"

"Hai."

"Oh god…" There was so much relief in Sasuke, so much hope and joy rushing through him. But he was unable to enjoy it for too long because he realized this meant he would, ultimately, come face to face with Kiba, and he wasn't sure he could handle seeing the pain of the boy he loved so much… and had hurt so badly.

"Is he OK? Please…please say he is OK."

"He is ok. Tsunade, miraculously, was able to get his heart beating again. And Sakura has really stepped up. She amazed even Tsunade-sama by reconstructing his face and body almost exactly. In fact--" Hinata blushed. "--he is even more handsome than before, though I am not sure how."

It was hard for Sasuke to believe Kiba could be even more beautiful that he had already been.

"Thank you, Hinata."

Hinata rose quietly and made to exit the room. As she walked through the door, she turned around.

"S-s-sasuke?"

"Yes?"

"Are you going to try and see him?"

How could she even think he could see Kiba?

"No, I don't think so. I…I can't face him."

Without replying, Hinata left.

0 0 0 0 0

"Kiba—wait up!" Shino jogged a bit to catch up with hi teammate. He reached down and gave Akamaru an affectionate pat.

"Hey, Shino!" Kiba seemed to be in good spirits. He had been out of the hospital for a couple days and was just returning from a walk with Aka. The Hokage wouldn't let him train yet, but he was allowed to wander around and walk. The fresh air and sunshine made the Inuzuka's cheeks flush pink.

"Hey, Sasuke gets out of the hospital today. Tsunade kept him hidden away as a caution, but she seems to think it is ok to set that mons…that boy loose on Konoha." Shino was never a spiteful person, or someone to hold a grudge, and Kiba didn't overlook the unusual bitterness in the boy. Likewise, Shino saw a flash of pain in Kiba's eyes, which confused him.

"Kiba, do you think he will come try and talk to you?

The Inuzuka smiled a sad smile. "I hope so, Shino."

"What? You can't be serious?"

Kiba was amused by his teammate. He couldn't remember Shino ever showing so much emotion, and Shino certainly had never raised his voice.

"I am quite serious, Aburame. I hope he comes to talk to me."

The two men walked in silence for a while.

"Kiba—I've been meaning to ask you…"

"Yes?"

"Why didn't Akamaru attack Sasuke and protect you?"

"Always the observant one, Shino. No one else has asked me… Akamaru did attack Sasuke originally, but I commanded him not to."

"You didn't want him to fight of Sasuke? Sasuke was killing you!"

"Sasuke wasn't killing me. He was killing his brother. I understood that. Shino, I'll see you later. I need to go home and rest. If you care about me, then don't go looking to hurt Sasuke, and stop anyone who tries. And…"

"Yes?" Shino couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"If you see Sasuke, please tell him I want to see him."

0 0 0 0 0

Everywhere he went, people went about their everyday activity. The Hokage had made sure none of the information about his hurting Kiba had gotten beyond the few ninjas who knew. She wanted to make sure he was safe and accepted in the village.

She had kept him for days, waiting for some sign that he wasn't sane. She waited for him to blow up or become unstable. But it never came. The only thing that came were the daily waves of anguish and guilt that crashed into him from the moment he woke up to the last minute before he went to sleep…and sometimes it didn't even stop there. Even though they had managed to save Kiba…Sasuke may as well have killed him, because that is what it felt like in his heart.

And now, knowing Kiba was out there somewhere, that beautiful boy that he had pounded into the ground, Sasuke couldn't stand himself. He couldn't see how everyone else could stand him. Watching the villagers go about their business, shopping in the market, washing their laundry, chatting on street corners made him want to yell out his confession and tell them what he really was: a monster. He wanted people to know, to hate him as he hated himself.

Everything reminded him of the dog boy, too. The puppies on the street, the smell of coffee and most of all, his own apartment. Everywhere he saw Kiba. He saw him standing and laughing, or cooking, or picking up. And, each night he went to shower, he saw Kiba standing shirtless, water dripping down a strong, lean chest…

Sasuke knew now how wrong he had been to push away Kiba. He couldn't have known how much he loved his friend until now, until he was gone. Yes…he couldn't have known how _in love_ he was with his friend until it was too late.

0 0 0 0 0

Sweat poured down his face. Kiba moved his headband lower to catch the drips before they got in his eyes. Squinting, he marked where Shino was. The other boy needed to take a breather as well, so he waited. They had been training together for over four hours and Kiba knew he would need to stop soon, he still hadn't recovered all his strength.

"Shino—you win. Let's call it a day."

"Hai." His friend had returned to his solemn, monosyllabic self.

"Shino?"

"Hn."

"Why don't you think he has come to see me?"

"Shame, probably."

"He has nothing to be ashamed of! Even the Hokage said it was Itachi's jutsu!"

Shino just shrugged his shoulders.

"Do you think I should go see him?"

"No. That is a dangerous game, Kiba."

"I know, but…"

"You have to talk to him."

Kiba nodded. "I do."

"Then go. But please, be careful."

Smirking, Kiba laughed. "I always am, bug-boy!"

Shino scowled as Kiba ran off with Akamaru.

0 0 0 0 0

A/N: OK, so I have the next chapter written as well, but it is different from what I have been writing. Because this is my first fic, I am waiting for my betatester to read this one through. I don't want it to be too much. I think it is great, but you know, I wrote it, so I am pretty biased. Anyway, could everyone tell me what they think of the story so far? Anything too far-fetched, or ppl ooc (Hinata a lot…), things you like/don't like?

Thanks. 3

Jenny


	16. Chapter 16

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

A/N: Warning: **Graphic** Lemon. If you want, when you get to it, you can skip it. This is the first time I've ever written a lemon, so uh, help me out with some advice. I feel real naughty posting it. 3

0 0 0 0 0

Sasuke had taken to hiding in his apartment for so long that Sakura would bring him some meals, just to make sure he was eating. It was about time for her to come again, and when the door knocked, Sasuke opened it, expecting the vibrant pink-haired girl to come in, dishing out the latest gossip and pestering him to stop being a baka and just go out.

The door swung open and Sasuke was greeted with slightly canine eyes, two red triangle tattoos and a giant smile.

Kiba winked.

Sasuke started to close the door, but Kiba stopped him.

"The last time you tried to keep me out, I almost broke down your door. Instead of risking that, why don't I just come in?" And Kiba stepped through the door and walked straight into the kitchen.

"W-where's Akamaru?"

"Eh, he wanted to see his brothers and sisters, so my mom is watching him for a week. I miss him already, though, big dumb dog that he is."

Sasuke was frozen into place. He could hear one of his cabinets opening, and then heard Kiba preparing tea.

"Kiba…"

"Is tea ok? Coffee didn't go over too well last time."

"Kiba…what are you doing here?"

Sasuke turned around and looked at his guest. Hinata had been correct. Thought he couldn't pinpoint what it was, Kiba was even more handsome than before. There was a sort of radiance coming from him.

"Well, I waited for you to come and talk to me, but you never did, so I came to see you.

"We…we don't have anything to talk about." Sasuke didn't sound as sure of himself as he normally did, and he felt even more insecure when the peaceful boy in his kitchen suddenly glared at him and growled.

"Don't start that shit again, Sasuke. We do need to talk, and you know it."

Moving to the couch, Sasuke sat down and covered his face in shame, defeated. He whispered through his hands, "I am not ready for this, Kiba. Please don't."

But the Inuzuka kept going. When the kettle whistled, he brought the tea set over. Kiba sat on his heels and began to prepare the tea. When he had poured himself and Sasuke a cup, he shifted until he was sitting crossed-legged and began to sip his tea.

His nose wrinkled.

"Your tea is old, Sasuke. How long does it take for dried leaves to go bad? You really should clean out your kitchen."

"Don't do this, Kiba."

"Don't do what?"

"Pretend like nothing happened."

Kiba sighed. "You said you weren't ready. But sooner or later, we are going to talk."

"Later."

"Fuck you, Uchiha."

Sasuke looked up in confusion.

"Excuse me?"

"I said, Fuck. You. Uchiha."

Not knowing what to say, Sasuke just stared, his mouth slightly agape.

Kiba spoke again. "We've been through this. You can't push me away. So stop it and fucking deal with me instead of being such a coward."

"I'm not being a coward! Its…Its just… How can you even stand to look at me?" Sasuke covered his face again and spoke, his words muffled by his palms. "How can you be nice to me? Why are you here, making me _tea_ of all things! How can you not hate me?"

Reaching a hand out, Kiba smoothed the hair on Sasuke's head.

"There is no reason to hate you."

But Sasuke recoiled, slapping the hand away.

"There is every reason to hate me. I almost killed you, when all I was trying to do was protect you!"

"Protect me? You ran away from me, remember? You pushed me away!"

"Exactly," Sasuke moaned. "We were getting too close and you were going to get hurt. You don't understand Itachi! You don't understand me!"

"Then goddamnit, Sasuke, help me understand!"

Standing up, Sasuke began to storm away, but Kiba stood and followed.

"Don't walk away, Sasu—"

"Kiba, just go. We can't do this. I can't do this. You could never understand any of it."

"Uchiha, we are going in circles. We need to stop and figure out what is going on here."

Sasuke turned around, his fists clenched. "Kiba, get out of my home, I am not doing this with you."

Smiling, Kiba shrugged, and it pissed Sasuke off.

"Listen, Sasuke. I don't care how many times you have to kill me—I will keep coming back until we talk, until you help me understand."

"Don't joke about that! Oh god…I can still see you under me… I am a monster!"

"I'm not joking. Punch me now if you think it will help."

Sasuke sank to his knees. Kiba crouched in front of him and reached a hand out, stroking the boy's face.

"Sasu—I died. Tsunade said my heart hadstopped beating. But I came back, and it isn't because of some magic chakra medicine she has. It is because there is something here—" Kiba moved his hand to Sasuke's chest and pressed it against the boy's heart."—that kept me alive."

Sasuke suddenly felt very uncomfortable.

"I don't know what you mean."

At this, Kiba smiled, his face brilliant and soft. His voice dropped. "Do you know how I found you, Sasuke?"

"No."

"Your smell."

"That is how you find everyone, baka."

"Yours is different. It is stronger. And there is a reason for it. I've known it since the day you first kicked me out, after the bath."

Sasuke looked up in confusion, and saw that Kiba had moved slightly closer to him. The boy seemed even larger, and Sasuke's heart beat harder as he could feel the heat from Kiba's body.

"What the hell are you talking about, Inuzuka?"

Kiba laughed out loud, throwing his head back and baring his teeth. His rich baritone laughter filled the apartment. When he stopped, he looked at Sasuke, winked and said, "You are in heat, Sasuke."

If Sasuke had ever been embarrassed before in his life, nothing could match how embarrassed he felt now.

"W-what the fuck are you talking about?"

"Come on, how long had it been since you had been with anyone?"

"I-I… I still don't know what you are going on about."

If his heart beat any harder, Sasuke thought, it would burst through his ribcage.

"God, you are a dobe. How long has it been since you fucked someone, Sasuke? Because I smelt it on you then, and I can smell it on you now, and it smells like it has been a really, really long time since you've gone to bed with someone."

Lowering his eyelashes, Sasuke tried to look at the floor, but Kiba's hand caught his chin, forcing them to look in each other's eyes.

"I…I… Kiba…"

Kiba's voice got soft. "I just want to know if you desired me."

Oh god. Kiba asked it. And now he was there, waiting, expecting and answer. Sasuke fought to clear his mind and find a lie.

"It was for Sakura."

"Bullshit."

Sasuke panicked and stared at Kiba.

"Sasuke, just answer the damned question. Are you turned on by me?"

Sasuke knew there was no out. "Yes…," he whispered.

And then he was pinned on the ground, a hot Inuzuka holding his arms and pressing his chest into him.

"What the hell are you doing, Kiba?"

"What we both have wanted."

And then Kiba kissed Sasuke. The kiss was rough and needy. Kiba pressed his lips onto Sasuke's, using his tongue to pry open the boy's mouth, slipping it in. Their tongues and lips danced, playing on each other, until finally Kiba broke away, panting hard.

Sasuke stared at the boy. Kiba's hair was flopping into his face, his cheeks were flushed and his eyes were wild. He wanted to kiss him so badly, to feel that mouth again… but instead he said, "Kiba, I'm sorry."

"For what? That was…amazing."

"No… I mean, yes, it was amazing, but…I just can't do this with you."

"Sshhhh…listen to me, Sasu. We have a lot of issues and demons to confront. But this… this is one problem I think we've solved. If we can just, I don't know…just try and make this work, then maybe the other things will come in time."

"But… I am not sure I can talk about things… and I don't think I can ever forgive myself for what I did to you."

"If you don't think you can forgive yourself, that breaks my heart. But you can start making it up to me now, and maybe that will help."

Before Sasuke could argue some more, Kiba kissed him again, gently this time, his lips lightly playing over the Uchiha's. He traced Sasuke's bottom lip with his tongue and Sasuke moaned into Kiba's mouth. The moan was low and full of desire, and Kiba's body reacted to it. Feeling Kiba get hard against his leg triggered his own body, and Sasuke slipped his hands out from where Kiba had them pinned. Still kissing the boy, he slid his hands into Kiba's hair and along his face, stroking the strong jaw and cheekbones. Gently, he pushed Kiba's face away.

"Kiba…"

"Oh Damnit, Sasuke, stop arguing and just—"

"Shut up, I just wanted to ask you a question."

The startled look on Kiba's face made Sasuke laugh.

"I just wanted to know… I mean now it seems like…"

"You want to know if I have done this before, been with a man."

"Yes."

"No, only women. Most of whom, you would be interested to know, were in love with you. One even called your name out."

"She did not!"

"She did. I couldn't be with another girl after that."

"So… you have never thought about being with a man?"

"Just you."

While Sasuke had been talking, he had also been moving his legs, hooking them at specific places on Kiba's knees. He used this now, along with his hands, to flip Kiba over, rolling on top and securing the boy under him. Kiba groaned with the shift of power and arched his back a little into Sasuke.

Sasuke leaned down and kissed Kiba again, this time taking charge. The kiss was aggressive, and Sasuke plunged his tongue into Kiba's mouth, claiming it. He moved his hips in between Kiba's legs and rocked a little, the friction sending shocks of pleasure through his body.

"Oh god…," Kiba whispered, obviously feeling just as much pleasure as Sasuke.

Sasuke kissed the red tattoos, making his way down the cheek, then nipped at Kiba's ear, causing Kiba to growl low. The sounds Kiba made turned Sasuke on so much. He traced his tongue along Kiba's lobe, loving the way Kiba gently bucked his hips.

Kiba almost died from pleasure when Sasuke's hot breath whispered into his ear, "Let's take this into the bedroom."

0 0 0 0 0

The last time Kiba had been in Sasuke's bedroom, he had been sleeping on the floor while taking care of the Uchiha. This time though, he was able to appreciate it for what it was. The room was typical Sasuke, sparsely furnished, clean and modern. The bed was quite wide and had a large oak headboard. The sheets were plain white, as was the comforter. The only other piece of furniture was a matching oak dresser, large and simple. There was not a lot to get knocked over or broken if things got a little…rough. This thought made Kiba laugh.

"Why are you laughing?"

But Kiba didn't answer, he turned and closed the door and then, grabbing Sasuke by the shoulders, slammed the boy against the shut door. His mouth attacked Sasuke, moving over his face and neck. His arms held Sasuke hard against the wood, so Sasuke just writhed and moaned under Kiba's passionate kisses.

Slowly, Sasuke raised his knee in between Kiba's legs, spreading them a bit. He dragged it softly along Kiba's thigh.

Kiba bucked hard and growled when the knee pushed softly against his cock. Sasuke took this opportunity to escape from Kiba's arms. He stepped forward and pushed his lover across the floor, nudging and stroking until Kiba's legs hit the edge of the bed. Kiba started to fall but Sasuke caught him, holding him tight, pressing into the boy. They continued to kiss, fast and desperate.Sasuke moved his hands under Kiba's shirt. The boy caught the hint and reached down, pulling the mesh shirt up and over his head.

"Kiba…you've gotten thinner." Sasuke's voice was filled with concern.

Kiba smiled. "Don't worry. I just haven't been able to train hard for a while… I'll put it back on soon. Do you still like it?'

What a dumb question. Of course Sasuke liked it… even thinner Kiba still had an amazing body. It was cut, and Sasuke could see each abdominal muscle… and the two lines that went down from Kiba's hips, leading to…

Sasuke groaned. He was a little scared, but not about what they were doing. He was scared about what would happen after. But, as for the current situation… he thought maybe he should feel scared or lost or confused…but he didn't. Something about being with him, with this boy, felt so right, and regardless of his lack of experience, he just instinctively knew what to do.

Reaching down, Sasuke pulled his own shirt up and off, dropping it on the floor. He caught Kiba licking his lips.

"Unlike me, you seem to have put on some muscle…you look incredible."

Sasuke blushed. It was true, he had put on some more muscle. Hiding in his apartment had given him lots of time, and he used his time and emotions to fuel grueling workout sessions. He still wasn't as large as the Inuzuka, but he could tell Kiba liked what he saw. A lot.

"God, you are gorgeous." Kiba pulled Sasuke in again and, turning, dropped them both on to the bed.

Kiba was on top again. The feeling of Sasuke's skin on his skin… felt incredible. It was so smooth and warm. He kissed Sasuke, slowing it down again. It was difficult to slow it down though. He had smelled Sasuke was in heat... that was partially why he had been so confused when the boy kept kicking him out. Though Kiba was initially shocked at the realization that Sasuke was turned on by him, the thought quickly became appealing. Kiba's family were very similar to dogs and because of this, when he had smelled Sasuke, he too became in heat. And now, the warmth, the sweat, the kissing and therubbing were driving him crazy. He found some willpower in him, and though it was difficult, he worked to not rush this. It was the first time for them both and he didn't want his dog-like tendencies to ruin it.

While they were kissing, Kiba slid his hand down Sasuke's stomach, feeling the tight abs. God, Sasuke really did have an amazing body. Kiba kissed Sasuke's neck and began to lick and suck at it while slowly moving his hand down, over Sasuke's pants, until he reached Sasuke's erection. He cupped him, stroking slowly. Sasuke moaned out loud and arched his back, pushing up into Kiba's hand.

When Kiba touched him, Sasuke thought he would explode. When the other girls had touched his cock…hell, even when he touched himself…nothing compared to the pleasure he felt now.

"Kiba…"

The boy understood. He reached around and, while still kissing Sasuke's neck and chest, undid the tie on Sasuke's pants.

Kiba stood up, ignoring Sasuke's protests, and hooked his fingers into the top, pulling Sasuke's pants and boxers off. When Sasuke's cock sprang free, Kiba moaned softly. He had seen Sasuke naked before, when bathing him but this…

He leaned over the boy, bracing himself on his arms. Reaching down, Kiba licked Sasuke's nipple. When the boy groaned, he knew to continue. He nipped and sucked the nipple, gently using his sharp teeth to drag along the sensitive skin. He kissed along Sasuke's strong chest and moved to the other, teasing it the same way. He sneaked a hand up and began to twist and play with the other nipple, causing Sasuke to writhe underneath him. Feeling the other boy's body and knowing he was doing this to him… Kiba had to work hard to restrain himself. His own cock was rock hard and straining against his pants, but he breathed in deep, trying to slow down his heart.

Kiba pinched both nipples, hard, causing Sasuke to jump under him and cry out in pleasure. The fact that the boy had been turned on by Kiba's venture into rough play fueled him on. He kissed down Sasuke's sides and licked around the boy's bellybutton. Kiba's tongue snaked out and along the boy's sharp hipbones, making Sasuke bite his lip to stifle his moans. Sasuke's hands gripped the sheets and when he saw, Kiba grinned. When he had been fucking girls, he enjoyed it, but giving them pleasure had never been as sexy, as hot as this was. Every noise Sasuke made, every time he moved under Kiba made Kiba's own groin heatup in pleasure.

Sasuke was going crazy. His body had never once felt such extreme pleasure as this. Every time he thought he had reached the height of pleasure, Kiba would suck differently or use his teeth or move to another area and Sasuke was proven wrong, because it kept getting better. He rolled his head from side to side and crossed his arms over his face. He felt such a conflict of emotions. He wanted this. Oh god, he wanted this so badly, and it was happening and he was in ecstasy. But… he didn't deserve it, he deserved punishment, torture, anything but this. Sasuke kept feeling a nagging in his heart, regardless of how his body felt., until…

Until Kiba took him in his mouth. And then any nagging thoughts disappeared. All Sasuke could feel was Kiba's warm, wet tongue moving over his cock.

Kiba swirled his tongue around the head, then down the bottom of the shaft. He dragged his tongue back up, slowly, listening to Sasuke call out in ecstasy, finally pushing his tongue into the slit at the head again. Sasuke's hips pushed up, pressing him into Kiba's mouth. Kiba slowly lowered, taking all of the cock in his mouth. Sasuke gasped hard and his body jerked. Kiba closed his eyes, enjoying the obvious pleasure he was giving. Then he felt Sasuke's hands wrap tightly into his hair, pulling him up. Kiba had been turned on being dominant, being the giver of pleasure. But when Sasuke grabbed his hair and began to push and pull Kiba's head, essentially _fucking_ Kiba's mouth, Kiba thought he was going to cum in his pants. It felt so hot to have Sasuke take control of him, tohave Sasuke push himself so deep in Kiba's throat that he almost gagged. While Sasuke thrust into Kiba's mouth, Kiba reached a hand down and began to stroke himself through his pants. Sasuke saw, groaned out loud and picked up the pace.

In order to keep steady, Kiba had to stop stroking himself and put both his hands on Sasuke's bucking hips. Kiba worked on breathing slowly and keeping his mouth wide enough so his teeth wouldn't scrape his lover. His eyes closed and he could feel his lips beginning to bruise from the quick pace of Sasuke's cock. He felt Sasuke's ass clench, and Sasuke jerked, throwing his head back and moaning loudly. Sasuke jerked a few more times, and Kiba felt him cum in his mouth. Instead of being disgusted, he found he liked the salty, bitter taste. Slowly pulling his lips off Sasuke, he looked into the boy's eyes, smiled, and swallowed. Sasuke groaned and let his head fall back on the bed.

"Kiba…"

"What?"

"That was…"

"For me, too."

"Do you want me to… to do the same to you?" Sasuke sounded earnest and it made Kiba smile, warming him from the inside. But he had other plans.

"Do you have any lubricant?"

Sasuke kept some under his bed for when he masturbated. He pointed it out to Kiba and the boy grabbed it, holding it in his hand."

"Sasuke… there is another way I'd like to take you."

Kiba pulled Sasuke forward, pulling the boy's hips off the bed. He then turned the boy over, so that Sasuke was kneeling on front of him, thrown over the edge of the bed. Kiba reached out a hand and stroked Sasuke's smooth, firm ass.

Sasuke lifted his head and strained to turn around to look at Kiba, his eyes wide. He saw Kiba putting lube on two of his fingers.

"Are you…?"

"Yes, is that ok?"

Sasuke's eyes became even wider, but Kiba continued, and moved the two lubed fingers down to Sasuke's ass.

He massaged the outside a little. Sasuke's face was red with shame, but it felt so good. Kiba pushed his two fingers inside him. Sasuke gasped loudly. He had expected it to hurt, but it actually felt good. Kiba just let his two fingers remain still, allowing Sasuke to get used to the sensation.

"If it hurts, or you don't like it, tell me." Kiba began to move his fingers in and out, curling them a little. When Sasuke didn't say anything, Kiba pushed his fingers harder and a little faster. While doing this, he began to rotate them a little. And then he found it.

The fingers moving inside of him felt strange, and Sasuke felt a bit ashamed allowing Kiba to violate him like this. But part of the shame actually turned him on, and he was enjoying the movement. But then Kiba's fingers hit a spot in him and a flash of unexpected pleasure hit Sasuke, causing his body to jerk. Kiba rubbed the spot more, probing, and Sasuke moaned, pushing his face into the sheets. He was confused when he felt Kiba pull his fingers out of him. Sasuke turned around to look again. He saw Kiba opening the lubricant again, putting a very large quantity of it on him.

"Let me help you…" Sasuke began to get up, reaching around for Kiba's cock, but Kiba slammed him back down on the bed.

"Stay." Sasuke stayed, his chest and face pushed into the sheets, his arms by his head.

"Good boy." Sasuke felt a hand on his lower back.

And then Kiba was inside of him. Only a little at first, allowing Sasuke to get adjust. Then, slowly, Kiba pushed in, aiming for the spot that made Sasuke moan and grab the sheets hard with his hands. Finally, Kiba was all the way in.

"Sasuke, do remember when we first fought? You accused my family of fucking our dogs."

Sasuke whimpered, trying to move.

"We don't fuck our dogs, but… we sometimes fuck like them."

Sasuke cried out, partially from genuine fear and when Kiba heard it, he growled low and long. He had waited and had gone slow, and now his willpower deserted him. His instincts kicked in and Kiba pulled out quickly, almost to the tip, and thrust, hard, back in. Sasuke cried out and Kiba moaned and waited. But Sasuke didn't complain or ask him to stop. Instead, he moved his hips back, trying to take more of Kiba inside. It broke Kiba and he grabbed a hold of Sasuke's hips, digging in his claws, and he began pumping his hips, working Sasuke's ass. He aimed for the spot and when he hit it Sasuke began to buck under him, wildly pushing back, clawing at the covers.

Kiba went crazy, slamming into the boy. A haze covered his eyes and his body took over. He felt Sasuke reach down and touch himself, so Kiba shifted, bringing himself closer to Sasuke. His thrusts were faster and shallower, but he bit hard into Sasuke's back while reaching a hand under to grab the boy's cock. He was pleasantly surprised to find that Sasuke was erect again. It turned him on so much he moaned, crying out Sasuke's name and began to stroke the hard cock in time with his thrusts.

He could feel his orgasm building and breathed heavily into Sasuke's ear, "I'm going to cum."

Face muffled by the sheets, Sasuke replied, "me too."

This sent Kiba over the edge and he pounded into the Uchiha, feeling the other boy shake with his own climax.

When the orgasm subsided, Kiba lay on Sasuke's back, taking his time to pull out.

He turned his beautiful Sharingan user over and saw the exhaustion on the boy's face. Kiba scooped Sasuke up in his arms and put him in bed, crawling in after.

As Kiba began to drift off to sleep, he felt Sasuke slip a protective arm over him.


	17. Chapter 17

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

A/N: I lied It hasn't been up long, but if any of you read this chapter before I changed it, you'll understand. Again, I have been confronted with a very busy life, which caused me to lose my…flow. I was at a loss for what to write next. I often only think one chapter ahead with this story, letting it write itself. So after the delicious sex scene… nothing came as to where to head with the story, at least until today. But I had felt bad and posted a complete shite chapter where Sasuke had made up his mind to (again) break it off with Kiba, which I read just now and hate. I mean, it could go on forever with the breaking up and making up and this needs to start going somewhere. So I have some ideas, and I apologize for my spazziness, but I am ready to get this story rolling again.

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It was still dark outside when Sasuke woke up. Laying so close to Kiba had caused their bodies to become hot and sweaty, almost uncomfortable, but Sasuke was unwilling to move, so he stayed, feeling the moisture gather between their skins. His arm was still holding Kiba, pulling the boy in close. Kiba had curled into a ball and was snoring slightly. Sasuke smiled. The snores were cute, and if Kiba was anywhere near as tired as he had been after their…activities, then the boy would be sleeping for a long time. Which led Sasuke to think…

_Why am I awake?_

An outside noise, a bird taking off or something, had jerked him out of sleep. That, and he had been having a nightmare, though he couldn't remember what about. But he could feel the after-effects like every other night he had a bad dream and couldn't remember. His heart was beating, he had cold sweat on his back and forehead. This time wasn't so bad, and he wondered if it had to do with the warm body curled up next to him.

The nighttime offered a solitude and darkness the Uchiha wasn't as accustomed to. Because his sight was limited, his other senses became more sensitive. His feeling of touch was electrified. Every time Kiba exhaled, Sasuke felt it. Every trickle of sweat, every slight tick as Kiba moved in his sleep, Sasuke felt it and almost…anticipated it. There was more, too. Sasuke could still taste the sex that had happened earlier. He could still remember the exact taste of Kiba's mouth, of his salty skin. And smell… for the first time, Sasuke felt aware of what it might be like to have Kiba's excellent sense of smell. The odor of their bodies lingered in the air and in the sheets. Even stronger was the Inuzuka's own smell. It was not like dog, the way everyone joked, but it wasn't like anyone else, either. Instead of smelling sweet, like girls did, or harsh, the way boys usually did, Kiba smelled… masculine. Clean. With a hint of outdoors, like trees were in his blood. The smell was intoxicating, wrapping itself around Sasuke, enveloping his mind until he could think of nothing but… _Kiba_.

Well, Kiba and the fact that he was awake. Again he questioned himself. God, why am I awake? But he knew. It was because this felt good. Too good and it had been so long since Sasuke had felt good that it felt bad, it felt wrong. His life had been such a rollercoaster of unhappiness that now he was here and his arm was wrapped around this incredible and beautiful person and instead of being able to enjoy it he felt wrong. Was he even allowed to feel happiness? Fate, un until this point, seemed to point to no, and that scared him. This calm, this peace and this happiness in the dark with Kiba snoring gently next to him…reminded Sasuke of the eye of a great storm named Itachi. And so he felt fear under all the happiness, all the content he felt, and that fear was growing.

He remembered the night before. Not just Kiba going down on him, not just Kiba_ inside _of him, but before that, when he had tried to fight Kiba and keep him away. He could still remember his own fear of Itachi and of the fact that Kiba simply could not understand what Itachi meant, what it had been like to live in his brother's shadow for so long. That inability to understand still had not changed, as wonderful as the physical connection had been—Sasuke was scared that this good thing couldn't last.

Kiba shifted under his arm, turning toward him.

A voice, filled with sleep, murmured, "Why are you awake?"

It surprised the normally aware Uchiha. "How did you know I wasn't asleep?"

"I could feel it. Is something wrong?"

"No. Go back to sleep, Kiba."

"Oknsdslkdn…" Kiba rolled over and laid his head in the crook of Sasuke's shoulder, wrapping his arms around the boy. Sasuke kissed the top of Kiba's head and settled down, staring at the ceiling.

It was going to be a long night, and Sasuke wished morning would never come.

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Never before had Kiba experienced waking up to the smell of coffee. But his keen nose picked it up quickly, long before the pot was finished brewing. It smelled delicious. In fact, everything about this morning was delicious. Admittedly it had been slightly upsetting to wake up alone after a night like the last one, but he was waking up in Sasuke's bed. Instead of worrying, Kiba rolled himself in the soft sheets, shrouding himself in the smell of his lover and the coffee, stretching and yawning. As a ninja, he rarely got to wake up slowly and he would be damned it he wasn't going to enjoy it.

Sasuke's voice drifted in from the kitchen. "Take a shower if you want, I already put a clean towel in the bathroom for you."

Disappointment flickered for a moment in Kiba's mind—he had wanted to shower with the Uchiha—but it didn't last. Shower or no shower, he fully intended to spend…quality time with his lover today.

Sasuke's bathroom was just as he remembered it, meticulously clean and simple. Kiba's own family tended to decorate in a way that filled each room with homey things and a sense of welcoming, but with so many people and dogs it often felt messy and cluttered as well. Sasuke's apartment offered a different type of welcoming that Kiba found very peaceful. It was incredibly clean and there was nothing unnecessary. Every item Sasuke owned had a function and a place. It would be difficult for Kiba to try and be neat up to Sasuke's standards but the Uchiha was worth every bit of effort.

In the shower, Kiba touched himself while recalling the events of the night before. When he had come over, he had known he was going to approach Sasuke about the pheromones he had been emitting. But Kiba had been frightened, because although he had hoped Sasuke had been turned on by him…there had also been doubt. After all, Sasuke had been with so many girls that Kiba was afraid he would be offended or revolted by the prospect of male lover.

The incredible sex seemed proof enough that Sasuke desired Kiba and had no problem with fucking a man. And god, did Sasuke know how to fuck. Kiba's hand moved faster on his cock in the shower and his breathing became labored. The steam and heat from the shower amplified the sensations he felt. He envisioned Sasuke under him, the feeling of being inside of Sasuke…

There was a knock on the door, breaking Kiba from his fantasy.

"Y-yes?"

Sasuke stuck his head inside.

"Dog boy, you had better not be doing what I think you are doing… because—"Sasuke's voice dropped, "—I have _plans_ for us this morning."

Those words and the emphasis Sasuke put on them sent a shiver down Kiba's spine and he almost came from the promise.

"D-don't worry… I'm, uh…washing my hair."

"Sure. Hurry up, breakfast is ready." Sasuke left without closing the door.

When he had finished, Kiba turned off the water and stepped onto the bathmat. This bathroom held a lot of memories for him and he took a minute to stifle the fear in his heart that Sasuke was just going to push him away again.

_It's different this time. He wants you, too._ The thoughts weren't as comforting as he wanted, but the smell of breakfast helped Kiba get moving.

He noticed as he was toweling off that his clothes had 'mysteriously' disappeared. So…the Uchiha had more on his agenda then just warning him to hurry up. Wrapping the towel low around his waist, Kiba walked to the kitchen.

Sitting Indian-style in a chair at the table, Sasuke was holding a cup off steaming coffee with both hands and pouring over a scroll. On the table was a large bowl of rice, a plate of dried seaweed, some steamed fish and a plate of cut-up fruit. The array made Kiba smile, because the simple breakfast was so _Sasuke_. It was a perfect ninja breakfast, with nothing too heavy to make one slow or tired. The rice was for energy, the seaweed for taste, the fish for protein and the fruit for nutrients and something sweet.

"You went all out!"

It had been obvious that Sasuke had been studying Kiba's every move since the moment the boy had entered the kitchen, but he feigned surprise anyway.

"Oh! You are done showering. I didn't know." Sasuke's eyes were taking in Kiba's almost nude body. "And I didn't go all out, I, uh—" There were still tiny drops of water falling from Kiba's hair onto his strong, tanned shoulders. "—just threw together a couple of things—" The rock hard abs and trail of hair running from Kiba's belly button to his "—I had lying around." Sasuke gulped. It wasn't that he had already forgotten how incredible the other boy's body had been, it was just that it was so solid and lean he couldn't help but admire it again with renewed awe. Kiba stood there and let Sasuke stare, amused and flattered by the pink flush rising in the Uchiha's cheeks.

"May I help myself?"

Sasuke snapped out of his momentary loss of control. "Kiba, you are always welcome here—please make yourself at home. You don't need to ask to do anything."

Smiling, Kiba went for the coffee pot. "I haven't always been welcome, you know. In fact, the past two times I was here you made it abundantly clear I was not to 'make myself at home.' I just wanted to verify my status." Though he had been joking, the hurt that flashed in Sasuke's eyes made Kiba regret saying anything.

"I…you know I didn't mean it… I mean, I did mean it, but now, things are, uh…"

"Shut up Sasuke, I should be the one putting my foot in my mouth." They both were red and the room filled with an awkward tension. Kiba brought his mug to the table and grabbed a piece of seaweed, spooning some rice and fish into it. Wrapping it up, he took a bite off one end. The rice was still hot enough to slightly burn his tongue, but the hot breakfast felt incredibly good. In fact, until that first bite he had not realized how famished he was. Kiba began to eat faster, shoving the food in his mouth.

Though he was starving, Sasuke continued to pretend to read his scroll, when really he was watching his guest eat. He had only ever eaten with his teammates. Sakura was forever dieting and so she took tiny bites and Naruto…well… watching him eat usually destroyed his appetite instead of encouraging it. Ever the observant one, Sasuke noted that everything he did, Kiba did with grace. Like his fighting style, he was quick and used large obvious movements. But each bite was cautious and planned, perfectly timed. To someone else, Kiba might rival Naruto in looking, well, almost like a pig. But Sasuke saw the grace, watched Kiba's firm jaw as he chewed and noticed that the boy never spilled even one grain of rice.

Kiba could feel Sasuke's scrutiny while chewing and quickly became embarrassed.

"I'm sorry, I'm such a pig…I should have waited for you and used utensils and—"

"You are fine. I'm sure working for your amazing body keeps you hungry. Please, don't worry."

Kiba smiled. "Its true, you know. Because many of my jutsus that incorporate Akamaru, I often require double the energy. Also, our fighting style is fast paced and combat-oriented, so I burn so much of my energy and chakra that I am constantly hungry." To emphasize this point he took another giant bite of his rice roll.

Having Kiba in his kitchen, eating his food… it didn't just feel wonderful, it felt natural. This, Sasuke mused, is what his family had used to feel like. And really, better than that, because unlike his family, he didn't feel a need to be equal to Kiba, or prove himself as worthy to Kiba. With him…Sasuke felt good just being himself. After all, Kiba more than anyone had every reason to hate him and probably _should_ hate him but instead…he was eating breakfast, relaxed, with his towel starting to become loose.

The towel was becoming undone around Kiba's waist as he continued to eat, and the peek at the exposed flesh gave Sasuke goosebumps. He is so beautiful. There were scars all over the tanned torso that he felt like he had never seen before, adding a sexy tough to his already wild boy.

"Kiba…about last night—"

"It was fucking amazing."

"—yes, it was. It was something I didn't even know I wanted so much. The way you touched me... I liked having someone taking the lead for once. It was different. But—"

"You are used to being the leader."

"Yes."

"And you want to know if we can try it your way the next time?" Kiba winked as he said this. Sasuke blushed, partly because he loved how Kiba always knew, for better or worse, what he was going to say. Kiba's interjections made it easier for Sasuke to talk about his feelings.

"Well, I didn't want to be so arrogant as to assume there would be another time, but—"

"Dobe! Of course there was going to be another time. There will be many, many more times if I have anything to do with it."

This made Sasuke smile everywhere, his insides warming. It wasn't just the prospect of more sex, it was that by saying the "many, many more" part, Kiba was essentially saying that they were now really seeing each other. A real relationship.

"Arigato, Kiba. It's just, with all we've been through, I didn't think you would trust me enough to…to be more aggressive. I don't want to hurt you, ever again."

Tears began to form in Kiba's eyes—he knew how hard this must be for Sasuke, and it broke his heart. The other boy obviously had not forgiven himself at all, even after all they had shared the previous night. Getting up, Kiba knelt in front of Sasuke and pulled the other boy into a tight embrace. At first Sasuke was stiff with surprise, but he soon melted into Kiba's arms, winding the fingers of one hand in the boy's hair.

"Sasuke—I trust you. I trust you completely. Never forget that."

They held each other in silence, Sasuke stroking Kiba's hair and skin. As his hand ventured lower, he realized that the towel that had been clothing Kiba had fallen off. Sasuke smiled. Cupping Kiba's face in his hands, he gently kissed the boy. Kiba opened his mouth in return, yielding under Sasuke. They embraced tighter, hands beginning to roam and discover skin. Sasuke craved to know every inch of Kiba with his fingertips, his tongue. He wrapped his fingers in Kiba's shaggy hair again and tightened them slightly. Sasuke yanked Kiba's hair, exposing the boy's neck. Yelping from the sudden pain, Kiba felt himself getting hard. _So…Sasuke is going to take charge_. The thought sent shivers down his spine. Never before had he bottomed, but already this felt…right.

Sasuke nipped and kissed Kiba's neck, he teeth and tongue moving along the exposed skin. He reached his free hand down and began to pinch and tweak Kiba's nipples, and then moved it down further to stroke Kiba's torso. He loved feeling the firm muscles flexing under his fingertips, feeling the goosebumps he was creating on Kiba's skin.

Getting out of his chair, Sasuke stood in front of his naked lover, both of them flushed and turned on.

"Take off my clothes."

Hands shaking, Kiba stood and removed Sasuke's shirt, his hands lingering on the naked flesh before moving to untie the Uchiha's pants. Kiba was forced to kneel to pull the pants off, and Sasuke moaned when Kiba got on his knees.

"Kiba—" he panted, moaning some more. "—please…"

Wrapping a hand around the shaft, Kiba guided Sasuke's cock into his mouth. Just as the night before, Sasuke was amazed at Kiba's skill, at how the warm, wet mouth and tongue sent sensations through him he had never felt before. The pleasure became so much it forced Sasuke to grip the side of the table to steady himself. He could already feel himself getting ready to cum, so he gently pulled away from Kiba's wanting mouth.

"W-wait." Kiba whined and moaned simultaneously, disappointed Sasuke had stopped him. The sound turned Sasuke on, hearing it and knowing how much his lover wanted him.

Pulling Kiba's hair again, Sasuke yanked the boy up. It was a little awkward once Kiba was standing because he was taller than Sasuke, but when their lips met and they fervently began to kiss, the awkwardness was gone. Sasuke reached down between them and began to stroke Kiba. Having Sasuke tough him was so much better than when he had touched himself. It was different in everyway—the speed, the pressure—and so, so much better. Their kisses became a bit violent, with teeth nipping at lips and tongues.

"God, Kiba… I want you so much…" Their eyes met, Sasuke's onyx and Kiba's canine-like brown ones, both filled with insatiable desire. Placing his hands on the taller boy's shoulders, Sasuke guided Kiba into the kitchen and leaned the boy over an empty counter. He grabbed Kiba's ass and hips, massaging them appreciatively.

"You are so beautiful…" He began to rub Kiba's entrance gently.

Kiba was panting hard and gripping the counter, writhing under Sasuke's touch. When Sasuke continued to play with him, teasing him instead of continuing, Kiba began to moan and push back a bit.

"P-please…I want you to. Please—" He felt Sasuke slip two fingers inside of him, causing him to inhale sharply. There wasn't any lube around and he didn't want to stop to go get it. _This is going to hurt_… But it was a kind of hurt he was craving, ravenous for. He wanted Sasuke now more than ever, wanted to feel him, wanted to be possessed by the Uchiha. "Sasuke…please…I want to feel you inside of me."

Groaning loudly, Sasuke agreed. Positioning himself behind Kiba, Sasuke thought he was going to die as he entered. Being here, being with Kiba felt perfect. He reached down and held Kiba's hands, which were gripping the counter. His chest pressed into Kiba's back, he pushed in slowly, moving with Kiba. They both moved together, as if their minds were connected, moaning and panting as they made love.

_This is what it feels like to be in love_, Sasuke realized.

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A/N: Another lemon. I am turning into a porn writer! Still, I like this one, because even with the aggressiveness… I wanted them to start feeling something more than just lust. So yay for falling in love! But…dramarama is still in the cards.


	18. Chapter 18

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, but thanks to my birthday, I now own the Konoha headband, a tshirt, a couple of kunai and shurikan, and some cuuuuuuuuuuute little figurines! Oh, and the movie, but we watched it and the translation was so ghetto.

A/N: Thanks for all my reviews and my hidden lurkers. Because this is my first fiction ever, I get nervous every time I post a new chapter! There are so many good fics out there right now, I am just trying to keep up!

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Sweat was pouring down Kiba's body as he did pushups. He could hear Sasuke grunting beside him, doing crunches. Because Sasuke's apartment had limited furniture, there was plenty of room for them both to work out. Originally Kiba had felt tentative asking Sasuke if it was OK for him to do some exercise. He didn't want the boy to take it as him being bored. But thankfully the Uchiha had wanted to work out as well, and it was actually pleasant to be doing it together. It gave Kiba a chance to watch Sasuke's hot body in motion.

Finishing his final set of press ups, Kiba collapsed on the floor. He still felt weak, but he had just done 100—not too bad. He rolled on to his side and watched as Sasuke did his crunches, the boy's face scrunched in pain and determination. Kiba's sensitive nose could pick up the smell of Sasuke's sweat. It smelled clean and well, like Sasuke. Finally Sasuke finished as well, laying back in exhaustion.

"So Kiba, where is Akamaru?" Sasuke began to stretch out his stomach as he spoke.

"Remember? I left him with my family for the week. I…didn't know if I would be spending time with you. I didn't want you to feel pressured when we talked by having my dog there."

"But now, are you going to leave him for the rest of the week?"

"I was planning on it. I assumed you and I would…be busy. This is big for you and me."

"I know, but I like Aka. And I hope he can like me, so maybe he should be here. You know, to see how happy we are together. Not to mention Aka is a part of you, and I know that loving you includes loving your dog."

There was nothing Sasuke could have said that could have made Kiba happier than he was hearing those words. It had always been an issue when he dated someone. To him, it was a given that Akamaru would come along and, in a sense, be part of the relationship because how tightly the two were tied together. Through experience, however, he had learned that the other girls of the village did not share his point of view, often becoming upset when he had brought Akamaru on dates. Sasuke had said the magic words—he accepted Aka in his life when he accepted Kiba.

"That is fucking fantastic, Sasu! You don't know how much I missed him!"

"Baka, of course I knew. You and that dog are never apart. I'm sure it has been eating at you not having him here."

"It has—can we go and pick him up today?"

This startled Sasuke. He had thought that Kiba would go pick up Akamaru while he waited at the apartment. But Kiba seemed to think they would both be going…

"Uh, Kiba? I'm not sure I'm ready to go out in the village yet. People are still very, very upset with me even if you aren't. With good reason, too…"

Again, Kiba's heart ached. He could see Sasuke reliving the fight in his head and knew the boy was overwhelmed with guilt. Adding on to that guilt would be the accusatory stares of everyone who knew what had happened. He couldn't imagine what the other boy was feeling now, but he wanted to help him as much as possible. Crawling over to where Sasuke lay on the floor, Kiba leaned down and gently kissed the boy's sweaty forehead.

"Sasu, I know it is going to be hard going out. I know you are still beating yourself up, and that it will take time for you to forgive yourself. Having people stare will make it hurt, I know. But I think that it would be good for them to see me with you, to see how happy I am with you. After all, if anyone should be filled with hate toward you, it should be me—" Sasuke's eyes closed in pain, but Kiba continued, scared about what he was going to say next. "—but I don't hate you at all. I… love you, Sasuke."

Those words, filled with compassion and sincerity, washed through Sasuke. They were a balm on his emotional scares, instantly taking away the pain, at least for the moment. He opened his eyes and stared at the gorgeous face hovering above his. Looking in Kiba's eyes, Sasuke could see that the boy meant it, and it made him feel…no words could describe the happiness he felt.

"…really?"

"God, of course! I am crazy about you. I have been since the mission, since taking care of you, even when we fought. I love you."

Again the words washed through and the feeling didn't diminish at all the second time they were said.

"I love you, too, Kiba."

They kissed, long and gentle. The kiss was filled with all the emotions, spoken and unspoken, they both felt. It was scary for each of them. This love was new, it was different and completely unexpected and yet they both felt it so much, and that kiss…it said it all.

"So lets get cleaned up and pick up Akamaru—I can't wait to see him!"

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Even though he knew that only a select few ninja knew about him, Sasuke was paranoid walking outside anyway. He felt people's stares on him, imagined them judging him, imagined each person disgusted. How was he worthy of this incredible man walking beside him?

The stares weren't imagined—Kiba felt them, too. But it wasn't because they knew about Sasuke. It was because Kiba was holding Sasuke's hand. Konoha was a very open-minded village, with plenty of same-sex relationships. Hell, though it wasn't talked about, everyone knew that even the Hokage, Tsunade, and Shizune were lovers. But people stared because it was Sasuke, the prodigy ninja that every girl loved. Villagers had even had bets on which girl would finally manage to break the Uchiha. So it was a great surprise for them to see that Sasuke had been tamed…by a boy. And a member of the Inuzuka clan, for that matter. No one had seen either of those things happening, and so seeing it was the shock of a century.

Keeping his head high, Kiba walked with his lover…no. With his boyfriend, through the streets of Konoha, toward his home. He ignored the stares, instead enjoying walking out in the sunshine, breathing in the (not so) fresh air of the city. It felt good to be out, and it felt even better to be out with Sasuke. It made Kiba nervous, but in a happy, excited way. He realized that, hopefully at least, this was the first day of a new life, his life with the Uchiha. It felt as if anything could happen, and the not-knowing made him feel exhilarated.

Kiba's pride and happiness radiated. Sasuke felt a reassuring squeeze, felt the sureness of Kiba, and stood straighter. Sun beating on his cheeks, he began to relax and clear his mind of the ugly thoughts that had been gathering there. Both boys strolled happily toward the Inuzuka home.

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Excitement pent up, about to break out, Kiba opened the door. Though he didn't live at home anymore, he still had a key. Inside, he could immediately smell that his sister and mother were home.

"Come on, I want you to meet my family!"

But Sasuke stopped. He hadn't thought about meeting Kiba's family before.

"Kiba—will they be ok? You know, with this?"

"Oh hell yeah, they'll be happy I finally found someone that makes me so happy. Don't worry, Sasuke, my clan cares most about the happiness and safety of its members. We are tightly knit. I…can't wait for you to be a part of it."

This made Sasuke smile and gave him confidence. If Kiba's family were even a tenth as wonderful as Kiba was, he knew he could love them all. Following Kiba, they made their way through the home.

A voice yelled at them from another room.

"KIBA! I can smell you from here? What are you doing home? And…YOU HAVE A GUEST!"

Kiba let loose a rolling laughter, filling the halls. It always felt good to be home.

"SIS! COME HERE AND MEET—" As he yelled, Kiba's sister rounded the corner. But Kiba stopped yelling when he saw his sister. She was shaking from rage, her hands clenching, a snarling sound coming from her throat. Eyes blazing, she turned red.

"What is_ he_ doing here?" she asked through clenched teeth. Sasuke saw her eyes and became very afraid, knowing the anger was directed at him. Apparently when Kiba was taken to the hospital, Tsunade had told the family about how Kiba had become a bloody pulp of a person. He didn't know if they knew that Kiba had actually been dead, even if for a minute, but judging by her face, Sasuke figured she knew.

"What the fuck, sis? Calm down. He is here as my guest." Kiba's voice was gentle, but his face was firm. He stepped forward, putting his body partially between his sister and Sasuke. She noted the protective gesture and became more full of rage.

"He is not welcome in this house. And you…what are you doing with that, that _monster_?"

Sasuke turned to leave, but Kiba grabbed his hand and held it tight. The movement confused his sister, and she began to laugh hard, a sick and ugly sound.

"Oh, little brother. You fool. How you can even stand to be near someone so evil is beside me. But this… I thought I had smelled a lover's scent on you. What the hell are you thinking? Are you fucking him?"

Kiba's face flushed with anger. Snarling, he mashed his teeth and yelled back. "Yes, I am fucking him. He is no monster. He is a powerful ninja, intelligent and caring, and he deserves your respect. You will not treat the man I love like this."

The words were like a slap to his sister's face.

"_LOVE_? You_ LOVE _him?"

Face resolute, Kiba forced himself to calm down. He stared her in the eyes, never blinking. "Listen to me now. I love him. You know nothing about what happened, or what kind of man he is. But I will tell you this: I do love him and will love him as long as he permits me to. No, longer than that, because I know I will love this man forever. So if you decide he is not welcome in this family, that you will not welcome the man I love into your heart, then… I will break from the clan."

For a clan as tightly knit as the Inuzuka's, to leave the clan was the ultimate insult. It was something no other Inuzuka had ever done, or even threatened to do. But his sister could see that Kiba was not just threatening—he meant every word he said. It broke her heart, tearing her apart, to think of losing her little brother. But Sasuke…she did not think she could ever forgive the boy for what he had done to Kiba. Unable to speak, she just stared at them, tears beginning to fall down her cheek.

Enraged, Kiba was not willing to be a part of the fight any more.

"Sis, listen to me. I mean it. You can discuss it with the clan, and I am more than willing to talk to you about it—but only if you mean to try and open your hearts to this man, this man that I love." His eyes moved to Sasuke. "I am going to get Akamaru and we are going to leave. If I don't hear back from you, I'll know your answer, and will go to Tsunade and officially break from the clan."

And with that, Kiba pulled Sasuke, who was in shock at all that had happened, to the kennel. They got Akamaru and left without saying goodbye.

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A/N: If you have anything you want to add, or something you don't like, please let me know!


	19. Chapter 19

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

A/N: I didn't even notice, but I was added to c2's for "crack" pairings. I would like to discuss this briefly: I like strange pairings. I think they force an author to be very creative, because not only are they writing something based on characters everyone knows about, but they are challenged to do so in a way that is believable to their readers. To me personally, while I enjoy traditional pairings such as Saku/Naru or Kaka/Iru, I enjoy reading strange pairings as a writer because I am able to see someone thinking outside of the box. This being said, I have decided that I enjoy writing fanfic enough that I will continue. I wasn't sure if this was going to be my only fic, but I am already toying around with some different pairings. I also want to extend the invitation for challenges. They can be pairings that you want to read, or something like an all-dialogue one-shot, or a death scene, a fight scene…basically anything. I'd really like some fodder to push myself as a writer. Hopefully, with enough practice, I can create my own world and characters. /end rant.

P.S. If you know of any "crack" pairings that you found pretty good, let me know so I can check it out!

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"It may be unnecessary, but please just promise me anyway."

For hours Kiba had been pacing around Sasuke's apartment, infuriated by the fight with his sister. Eventually he and Sasuke agreed he needed some alone time, but before Kiba ran off, he wanted Sasuke to promise he would be there when he returned.

"Kiba, really, it is fine. You need some time to think and some fresh air to help cool you off. After all that… I am just not ready to go out in the village again. I need to do some thinking, too… I promise to be here when you return. I'm not going anywhere…for now."

"Ok, but may I leave Aka with you?"

Sasuke nodded. Of course the dog could stay with him. Kiba turned and left, accidentally slamming the door on his way out. Sasuke noticed how silent it felt with Kiba gone, and how lonely. For having been a loner for so long, he was suddenly uncomfortable with his solitude. A small bark reminded him he wasn't along. Sasuke looked at Akamaru. The dog had grown so much. He remembered when Aka had been tiny enough he fit into the hood of Kiba's jacket. Now the dog was the size of a small bear. Anyone who didn't know the animal would be frightened out of their minds—Aka had scars from fights running along his flanks, huge teeth and red eyes. Though he had never seen it personally, Sasuke knew that if Kiba gave Aka a food pill the dog's fur turned a dark crimson and his size almost doubled. Secretly Sasuke hoped to never see that side of Aka.

A knock on the door surprised the Uchiha._ Kiba didn't come back already, did he?_ Walking over, Sasuke opened the door. A familiar tanned face under a blond mop of hair stared back at him. Though he was initially relieved it was Naruto, the look on the other boy's face quickly replaced fear with discomfort.

Naruto was seething, his face and 'whiskers' red, his shoulders shaking from anger. Sasuke waited, his friend and teammate just staring at him and grinding his teeth.

"Uh, Naruto?"

And then Naruto punched him, hard.

"Naruto, what the hell?"

Naruto pushed Sasuke, pushing, pushing until they were both in the apartment. He slammed the door behind them, then turned and kicked Sasuke.

"Naruto, STOP! Why are you doing this?"

Unable to speak but tired of beating on Sasuke, Naruto took a seat on the couch, holding his head in his hands and occasionally punching the cushions.

Sasuke sat on the ground, looking at his teammate and rubbing his wounds.

Finally, the blond ninja was ready to talk.

"Sasuke, I think you should leave the village."

"What the fuck are you talking about? Why would I leave?"

When Naruto's eyes met his, they were red and feral, and they scared Sasuke to the core. The last time he had seen those eyes was when he and Naruto had fought, and he had tried to kill the Uzumaki.

"I always forgave you, did you know that? Even when you pounded me into the ground, when you almost killed me, I forgave you. I forgave you for choosing Orochimaru over me—which hurt most of all—because you were my friend, and I knew—or I thought I knew—that you were still a good person under it all. But you have crossed a line now, and I don't know if I can forgive you, but I think you should leave because if you don't I may not be able to control my anger."

"Naruto. Please tell me what you are talking about." Sasuke thought he knew, but he wanted to hear the blonde say it first.

"I had heard villagers talking about you…walking with Kiba today. So I asked Sakura-chan about it. She was shocked and said you couldn't be walking with Kiba, because you had…a fight with him. When I pushed her to tell me more…she told me what you did. What you did to him."

Breathing in deeply, Sasuke closed his eyes. The Hokage and he had agreed not to tell Naruto…and now that the noisy ninja knew, he wasn't sure what to do.

"Naruto… I know my life has been filled with excuses and you may not want to hear another one. I was cold and arrogant because of my family's past. I was cruel to you and I did almost kill you because of my quest for power. And yes, I did...hurt Kiba. In fact, I killed him, at least momentarily, and I can't begin to explain the grief I feel over it all. But please listen to me, for this is my only excuse, my only defense. All of these things that I did, they were caused by Itachi. You've met Itachi. You… know what he is like. And I was walking with Kiba today. He has forgiven me. So I hope that you can hear me, can hear how scared I am, and forgive me as well."

Never before had Sasuke admitted, actually said out loud so Naruto could hear, that he was scared. It was enough make the noisy ninja shut up and think. It was hard for him. Somehow, if Sasuke was only hurting him, he could take it. He felt his friendship with the boy and their similarities of growing up without parents allowed him to forgive everything. But Sasuke hurting someone else, and so brutally…

"Why Kiba, Sasuke? What is going on?"

A deep flush crept up Sasuke's neck and onto his cheeks and he found himself unable to look Naruto in the eyes.

"I-its…complicated."

Now Naruto was curious. Sakura had refused to tell him anything about Sasuke and Kiba. He couldn't understand why—until the mission, neither of them ever spoke, and they had nothing in common! Why was Sasuke suddenly treating Kiba like some sort of secret?

"So explain 'complicated," I'm not a fucking idiot."

Sasuke's eyes lit up and he opened his mouth to retort but Naruto cut him off. "Don't even say it, Sasuke, just tell me what's going on. I'm trying to forgive you, but nothing makes sense, like why you would attack Kiba so viciously or why he would be walking with you and I really don't understand why the villagers were talking so much about you two walking together."

He was going to have to explain, he knew it, but he was worried about Naruto's reaction. He didn't think the boy would understand and he didn't want their friendship or teamwork to suffer if Naruto felt weird. Still, if he lied or hid it, Naruto would find out from someone else and if he couldn't forgive him now, he really wouldn't forgive being lied to.

Inhaling deeply, Sasuke decided to start with the last question asked and go from there.

"The villagers were probably talking about Kiba and me because… Kiba was holding my hand."

Naruto's face scrunched up in confusion. Sasuke could almost see the wheels in his head turning. It didn't look like they were turning enough.

"Why would that be of interest to anyone?" Sasuke shook his head and raised a knowing eyebrow at the slow boy. His look made it obvious what "holding hands" meant. Finally, he say it click in Naruto's head—the boy's jaw dropped and his eyes went wide.

"WHAT?"

"Naruto, calm dow—"

"You and, and, and…KIBA?"

"Let me explai—"

"As in KIBA WHO IS A BOY? HOW LONG? WHEN DID THIS HAPPEN? WHO KNOWS? OH MY GOD YOU ARE WITH KIBA! HE SMELLS LIKE A DOG!WHEN DID THIS ALL—"

"DOBE. Shut up, and I will tell you."

Naruto clamped a hand over his mouth and began to rock back and forth. Sasuke sighed…why did his friend have to be so damned noisy?

"When we went on the mission, you remember Kiba and me spending time together?"

Naruto, hand still over his mouth, simply nodded.

Rolling his eyes, Sasuke continued. "We found something in each other that I think we were missing before. I…fell in love with him." Sasuke looked away, trying to appear cool and confident, but really he was watching Naruto's reaction to this latest bit of information. Naruto's eyes bugged out and his hand fell down.

"WHHHHAAAAAAAT? YOU LOVE HIM?"

"Yes."

Naruto shook his head, hitting it with his hands as if he was trying to beat out all his crazy thoughts. When he finally calmed down, he looked up with a suspicious eye.

"Sasuke…if you like boys, _like_ like boys, then did you ever like me? Because I always thought maybe you were checking me out..."

Sighing hard, Sasuke shook his head no. "Naruto, I didn't know how I felt until Kiba came into my life."

Again the face scrunched with confusion as the blond ninja tried to sort everything out. _Geez...this is going to take forever_, Sasuke thought. He waited for his friend to catch up to speed. When Naruto seemed to get things in order, instead of becoming angry or happy or any of the emotions Sasuke been expecting, he became very sad.

"Naruto, what is it?"

"Its just that…not that I wanted you to…but…"

"But what?"

"I was jealous when you spoke so much to Kiba. It isn't that I wanted something romantic between us—"Naruto's nose wrinkled in distaste. "—it is just that I wish…you could have liked and trusted me as much as a friend as you do him." The blonde stared at the floor, turning red with his admission.

For the first time that night, Sasuke smiled.

"Dobe. You have always been my friend, even if I don't tell you that. Who else would have come to save me from Orochimaru, no matter the odds? Just because I am in love with Kiba does not mean I trust or like you any less…I just do in a different way."

Uncomfortable with the situation, Naruto just smiled and for once accepted what Sasuke said with out pushing any further. At least at that point.

"But I don't understand now, Sasuke…how could you…how could you _do _such a thing to someone you love?"

Pain welled in the Uchiha's heart from the memories of Kiba's lifeless body—or what had been left of it.

"I…I don't know what happened. I've spoken to Tsunade and Kiba. We still aren't sure what was going on in my mind, but…all I could see and hear was Itachi. If I had known at all it was Kiba, I never would have…I still feel so…" Sasuke couldn't finish. He just stared at the floor, feeling the hate for himself beginning to build again.

"Well, are you still messed up in the head?"

"I don't think so. Tsunade ran tests and kept me for a couple of days, but aside from what she described as 'strange chakra activity,' I am normal now. I haven't hallucinated since then, only had nightmares, and those are to be expected. Kakashi-sensei was also under Itachi's justsu once and told me he had nightmares for years after."

The two boys just sat there in silence, Naruto digesting the mass amount of new information he received and Sasuke silently judging himself over what had happened.

After what seemed like an hour, Naruto broke the quiet. He had a huge grin on his face—obviously he had finally worked everything out in his mind—and began to laugh.

"What's so funny, baka?"

"I'm very, very happy for you and Kiba!"

"Why?"

"Because now Sakura-chan can be ALL MINE! HAHAHAHA"

This made Sasuke smile again, joining his friend. It was true—now that he knew Kiba, he understood why it never could have worked out between him and Sakura. Naruto had been… polite when he and she had dated, but he wasn't happy. When they broke up, Naruto had been sad for Sakura but secretly happy for himself. Everyone knew that although Sakura had gotten over the break-up, as long as Sasuke did not date anyone else seriously, she always seemed to carry a tiny hope that it might work out later. But with Sasuke being with Kiba… Sakura would have no chance. And Naruto would be there with a 'comforting' shoulder, should she need it.

In between giggles, Naruto managed to continue talking. "Oh (heehee), it makes so much sense now! (heeheehee) H-have you (heehee) told his family yet?"

The instant feeling of cold in the room let Naruto know he had said something wrong. Looking at his friend, he could see the hurt look.

"They aren't ok with it."

"They aren't ok with their son being involved with a…monster. And I… am not so sure I disagree with them."

This pissed Naruto off. "But you aren't a monster! And the more I think about it, the more you are perfect for Kiba! That dumbass needs someone cool like you! How could you say you are a monster?"

He was exhausted, tired from this conversation, tired from all the events of the day, of the emotions and the worry. Sasuke lay back on the carpet and stared at the ceiling.

"If you remember, Naruto, you came here planning on kicking me out of Konoha. You were also under the impression I was a monster."

"But it's different now! I know! I still don't fully understand how Kiba was able to forgive you, but if he did, I can too! And so can his family! No one should call you a monster!"

Sasuke didn't answer, but he wasn't so sure. People seemed quick to forgive him, but he didn't think the Inuzuka's would. He had almost killed one of their greatest ninjas. And he had told the truth to Naruto, even if the boy disagreed…he didn't think they were so far off in calling him a monster. Jutsu or not, he should have known. Hurting Kiba had been entirely his fault. Hell…he had killed the boy. If he couldn't even forgive himself…he wasn't sure Kiba's clan could, either.

"Naruto…he told his family he would break from them for me, if they chose not to accept me."

"WHAT? But no one has ever broken off from the Inuzuka clan!"

"I know. I don't think they will accept me. I know…if it were the Uchiha clan…it would not be tolerated."

"What will you two do?"

"I… I don't know if I can let him break from his family for me."

The two talked some more. Eventually, Naruto being himself couldn't let the conversation be serious for much longer. He teased Sasuke and made some very crude remarks involving Kiba and bedroom activities before leaving. Sasuke was glad his friend knew and had forgiven him, but instead of helping him to feel better, Sasuke could only feel guilty. The conversation had started him thinking.

There was just too much going on for him to comprehend it all. He knew he loved Kiba, and that he had never felt so happy before, so whole. His entire life had felt empty, and he had tried to fill that void with revenge. Itachi had consumed his life, causing him to feel nothing but hate and desire for power. Kiba was changing that, and although Sasuke loved the boy, loved the idea of the relationship, but he wasn't sure how it fit into his plans. And, although Kiba seemed confident and determined, Sasuke had not forgotten how dangerous his brother was. He easily believed that if Itachi knew about his relationship with Kiba, he would use that to hurt Sasuke. And Sasuke couldn't bear it if anything ever happened to Kiba again because of him.

He loved Kiba.

He had killed the boy he loved. The fact that the Inuzuka had been revived didn't matter—what mattered was the blood was still on Sasuke's hands.

And Itachi…he couldn't abandon his need to avenge for anyone, not even Kiba. And though there were no direct problems, Sasuke wondered if it was just the eye of the storm, and that his future with Itachi would be much, much more dangerous.

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A/N: I have been putting up first drafts with no revision for the past three chapters. My beta tester is busy with school, and I am eager to keep this fic moving. I am not sure if I will go back and edit later. So if there are bunches of mistakes, now you know why.

I don't know if I like this chapter. Writing Naruto in character is difficult for me, especially regarding Sasuke loving someone else. I had trouble deciding how Naruto would react to Sasuke's violence, and how Sasuke would explain his new relationship. The ending is something I am especially unsure about, because I need to keep Sasuke unsure, but I am afraid he is starting to come off as too emo/whiney. So please please please if you have any suggestions, help a struggling author out.


	20. Chapter 20

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

A/N: Wow, I've been very pleased with the reviews I've been getting. And I agree with whoever said that the past two chapters weren't very strong—transitioning is hard. Hopefully I will be able to pick it up from here.

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"Do you always have to be so damned angsty all of the time?"

It was their third fight that week. This time it was over the fact that Kiba had been summoned to the Inuzuka household.

"It isn't that I'm angsty…I just don't want you to break from you clan for me! I'm not worth it, Kiba. The boy who almost killed you isn't worth you breaking hundreds of years of tradition. I'm just asking for you to not be so rash!"

"Rash? For god's sake, I love you! Doing what I need to do to be with you is not acting rash!"

"That's just it—I don't think you should need to do this." Sasuke turned away—he hated looking at Kiba when the boy was this angry. Kiba's face softened and he walked over to his boyfriend. Placing a hand around Sasuke's waist, Kiba pulled him close, nuzzling his neck.

"Sasu…I know you still feel guilt. You'll probably feel it forever—though you shouldn't—and I understand what you are saying. But please listen to me. You are worth it. You are worth losing my family. If I had to stop being a ninja for you, I would. I would do anything to keep you, to love you. So don't tell me to give you up just because you seem to not know how much I love you—that is unacceptable."

Sasuke slumped in Kiba's arms, defeated. He leaned back, resting his head on the other boy's strong shoulders. It would be a lie for him to say he wasn't happy—how could he not be after that? But he was still distressed. He didn't know if he could handle the guilt of their past as well as the guilt of breaking up a powerful clan. Sighing, Sasuke didn't think there would ever be a solution to his problems.

"Now what are you sighing about?"

"I think you should go and talk to your family and at least hear what they have to say. Go for me, please?"

"I will go for you. Besides, if I am to break from the clan, I will need to speak with them about going to Tsunade. What is it that Shikamaru always says?"

"Troublesome?"

"Yeah! This whole thing is so troublesome."

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Sasuke was edgy. Because everything was happening in a whirlwind fashion, he was disoriented. Having spent his entire life cool and calm, with plans and goals, this new situation had him completely thrown. Kiba was gone, and Sasuke hoped it was going well. It hurt him that he could only see a double-edged sword—if Kiba were to stay with his clan, Sasuke thought the loss of his love might drive him insane. But if Kiba stayed with him, Sasuke would have the end of a clan on his hands. Both outcomes seemed overwhelming and unavoidable to him.

It was time to get organized. He would never know how to handle the future if he couldn't gain control of his life. Besides, although Kiba had been joking, it hurt Sasuke to think that the other boy might think he was too full of angst and depressed all of the time.

Where to start was an interesting question—Sasuke wasn't used to having so many thoughts to sort through. He went and got a piece of paper and a pen. After he had them, he sat down on his couch and closed his eyes, breathing slowly.

The first thing he wrote down was that he loved Kiba. Seeing the words on paper filled him with joy, so he knew that was an irrefutable fact. From that sentence he drew two lines—one for all the good things that came from his love and one for all the bad. Sasuke decided to do the good side first because, though it made him sad to admit it, it was harder.

_Number one: I am happy, really happy, for the first time in years. I am also in love for the first time ever._

_Number Two: Naruto approves. With his and Kiba's acceptance, other ninjas won't see me as a monster anymore. _

That was as far as he could get. He moved to the bad side.

_Number one: I am farther from my goal of killing Itachi._

_Number two: Kiba could get hurt by Itachi. _

_Number three: I could hurt and kill Kiba by accident. _

_Number four: If I don't kill Itachi, my destiny as the Avenger will go unfulfilled. _

_Numberfive: Kiba and I cannot have children, so I cannot revive my clan with him. _

The last one hit at his heart. He hadn't even thought of that before, but there it was, scrawled out on the paper. He couldn't revive his clan. And the other four…no matter how in love he was, Sasuke could never give up his goal of revenging his clan. If he stayed with Kiba, he couldn't see how revenge would be possible. Kiba would be…holding him back. Sasuke's heart was breaking for what felt like the millionth time. As much as he wanted to disagree, to refuse…he couldn't deny the list. It was organized and now that he had control over his thoughts, he realized that he could never be happy until Itachi was gone. He didn't deserve to be happy until he had put is brother in a grave.

And Kiba was gone, about to throw away his title and family for a relationship that couldn't be. Panicked, Sasuke threw his list in his pocket and ran out the door. He had to get to the Inuzuka household before Kiba made the biggest mistake of his life.

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Out of breath, Sasuke pounded on the front door. He was scared of the reaction he would get, but it was more important he save Kiba than worry about his own safety.

No one was answering. They were probably all in a conference room, Kiba's parents crying, his sister angry and Kiba unaware of the mistake he had made, all over Sasuke. This image gave Sasuke courage, and he opened the door, entering the Inuzuka household.

"Hello?" There was no one he could see in the hallway.

Jogging, Sasuke looked in rooms as he moved through the house. "Hello? Can anyone hear me?"

The only thing he could hear was his own voice and the sound of his sandals on the tiled floor. Searching his memory, Sasuke remembered a large room they had passed on the other side of the household when they picked up Akamaru. Sprinting, Sasuke prayed he would make it there in time.

When he arrived, the huge oak doors were shut. Pressing his ear against the door, he listened. There was a murmur of voices but Sasuke couldn't tell the tone. Taking a deep breath to steady himself, he burst through the doors.

"Kiba, don't break from your clan!"

A host of feral eyes turned to him. The room was huge and there were easily thirty adults sitting around, all with their eyes on Sasuke. Kiba was to his left, looking startled but not quite so shocked as the rest of his family. Sasuke ran over and knelt before his beautiful boyfriend, saying it again, softer. "Kiba, don't break from your clan… please."

"Ok."

The word hit Sasuke like a hammer. Although it was what he had come there to hear, something inside of him had hoped for more of a fight. Kiba had just agreed so nonchalantly, causing Sasuke's insides to twist with grief.

"W-what?"

"OK, I won't break from my clan."

By this time, Sasuke's face was white as a sheet. He felt as if all of his blood was leaking out him onto the rug he was kneeling on and he would die of a broken heart.

"Oh…ok." Steeling himself, he prepared to stand up and leave, but Kiba caught his wrist.

"Where are you going, baka?"

"Well, uh… you are staying with your family, so…I should leave."

Instead of letting him go, Kiba pulled Sasuke into him, hard, hugging the boy. They fell onto the floor and Sasuke could hear Kiba's deep roaring laugh in his ears. It was then, as he was struggling to get some balance, to push away from the strong arms encircled around him, that he heard other laughs, too. Kiba's family were all laughing.

Breaking away from the Inuzuka's embrace, Sasuke looked around. Instead of seeing faces twisted with hate, he saw loving and compassionate smiles.

"W-what's going on?"

Kiba stood up, slipping an arm around Sasuke's waist, facing the boy. He looked intensely into Sasuke's dark onyx orbs.

"Sasu—did you think I would give you up so easily after all I said to you?"

"But you just said you were staying—"

"Because I am staying with my clan."

"But then how are you going to be—"

"Because they accept you. They accept us."

Sasuke was floored, unable to move. His eyes moved from his lover's sweeping the room. Kiba hadn't been lying—in every face he saw, he saw acceptance. It was Kiba's sister who spoke then.

"My little brother has explained what happened. I will admit, it is still hard to know you almost killed him, but…it wasn't him you were killing. It was your brother. Everyone here knows at least a little of what Itachi did, and so your hate for your brother is perfectly understandable. And if Kiba trusts you enough to be with you so completely, then we have to trust Kiba's decision. After all, he has incredible animal instinct." She winked after this last statement.

Mouth slightly open from shock, Sasuke couldn't say anything. But as he stood there, each aunt and uncle of Kiba's family stood up, walked over and hugged him before they left the room, literally showing him just how accepting they were. They were welcoming him into the clan.

Kiba's mother was last. She hugged him and paused to whisper in his ear.

"Now that I know, I am honored to have an Uchiha join our clan. Treat my son well, I beg you."

She kissed his cheek and left, leaving him standing, still paralyzed with shock.

"So, Uchiha…what were you running in here all panicked for?"

Sasuke turned to Kiba. His emotions were welling up—he hadn't felt so loved in a long time, and he had to fight to remain his calm, normal self. But he wasn't fooling Kiba's sharp eyes.

"Hey, Sasuke, what is the matter?"

"I…I don't know what to say…"

"Say you are happy. Say this is what you want."

"I am happy…and I do want this, but—"

"No. No 'buts.' You are happy and you want this, and so do I. That is enough."

Sasuke embraced Kiba, kissing him hard. The torment in him raged and he took it out on his lover's mouth, brutally lashing his tongue and teeth. The kiss was urgent and painful, and Kiba succumbed to it, allowing his lips to be accosted. As they became more heated, Sasuke began to move his hands, touching Kiba's body, forcing the boy to break off the kiss.

Panting, Kiba stared lustfully into Sasuke's eyes.

"Sasu, remember where we are. Let's take this home. To our home."

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Fingertips dragged lazily over skin after the one of the hardest, roughest fucks Kiba could remember. Sasuke had been like an animal, needy and desperate. He had taken Kiba twice, long and fast, crying out Kiba's name the whole time. And while the sex had been good…hell, it had been incredible, Kiba was worried about what fueled the groping and rough Sasuke.

"Sasuke, why did you come to the clan household?"

Rolling over to face his boyfriend, Sasuke's face was in a grimace. Kiba filled with worry.

"I was going to tell you not to break from the clan."

"No kidding. I mean why did you want me to not break so desperately?"

Sasuke reached a hand out and stroked Kiba's cheek. The boy hadn't shaved in a couple of days and the Uchiha enjoyed the rough feeling on his palm. The caress was filled with love, but Kiba knew the sadness behind it.

"I…came to…" But he couldn't finish the sentence. Sasuke looked away.

"To break up with me."

As per usual, Kiba hit the nail on the head. The boy always seemed to know exactly what Sasuke was thinking.

"Yes."

Kiba pulled away from Sasuke's touch and rolled on to his back, staring at the ceiling.

"Kiba?"

But Kiba didn't say anything, so Sasuke scooted closer. Propping his head on one hand, he stared down at his boyfriend's beautiful face.

"Kiba."

"Sasuke…I need to know how many times we are going to go through this song and dance. How many times are we going to have this talk, where you aren't sure and I remind you that I am not leaving, and then we resolve things until you decide you aren't sure again. I mean, what makes you doubt me so much? What can I do to prove myself to you?"

"Oh Kiba…you don't have to prove yourself to me. I don't doubt you at all."

"Then why the hell do you keep doing this?" Kiba sat up, pulling his knees into his chest and wrapping his arms around them.

Sasuke sat up, too, facing his distressed lover.

"This is hard for me too, you know—"

"Then stop fucking trying to break up with me!"

"But we have to, Kiba."

"For fuck's sake, WHY? You said you were happy and that you wanted this! What could possibly be more important than that?"

"Vengeance."

Kiba stared at Sasuke, studying the boy's face. The Uchiha was dead serious.

"Vengeance…Itachi?" It was barely a whisper as Kiba fought back his tears.

"Hai. It is my destiny to kill my brother. And any happiness, any love I find…is only secondary and getting in my way. I can't have love or happiness until I fulfill my fate—until Itachi is dead."

"Or until you are dead."

"If that is the way it is meant to be."

"And you don't think we are meant to be? Something has brought us together, and you know it! We were never in the same groups, never had contact—there is no reason we should be in love and together, and yet here we are!"

"Kiba…please don't make this any harder than it already is. I don't know if fate brought us together. But I know that my future is with Itachi, and I can't have you getting hurt…or holding me back."

Kiba recoiled as if he had been punched. He might has well have been. Those words had cut him, causing him to bleed inside. He loved Sasuke so much and couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"Is vengeance so important, so necessary to you?"

Sasuke stared at him in horror. _How could Kiba say such a thing_?

"Of course it is? You weren't there! You don't know what it has been like for me! I knew it… I knew you could never understand it…there is so much pain and sorrow and…and hate. You can't understand why I need to do this so much."

"Then show me so I can understand, because I need to know if I am going to let this happen."

Sasuke looked away, rubbing his face with his hands. Why couldn't Kiba let it go? Why was he making this so much harder than it already was?

"I can't show you the pain…"

"Yes, you can."

Sasuke looked at the Inuzuka incredulously.

"What the hell are you talking about?"

"The Mangekyou."

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A/N: Done! Again, just a first draft. I think I will probably go back and clean things up after I finish the story. Hope the mistakes don't bother anyone too much. Anyway, thanks again to everyone reading my fic, and I hope you are still enjoying it!


	21. Chapter 21

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

A/N: So, I got a new job, yay! The only thing that is sad about it is I have much less time to write. But now, if you are in my neighborhood, I might be the one serving you fresh organic food and tips for healthy living. YAY!

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"What the fuck are you talking about, Kiba?"

"Use the Mangekyou and show me why vengeance is so important to you. I need to see what is worth throwing away everything good in your life."

"Dobe, I don't have that power. Only Itachi does. It is how he keeps beating me."

"I don't think he wants to keep beating you…I think he wants you to win."

Sasuke's eyes were wide with disbelief. What was Kiba even talking about? Of course Itachi wanted to win!

"My brother has only spared me because he likes to torture me."

Kiba lay a hand on Sasuke's cheek, stroking it.

"My love…while that may be true, it is also obvious that Itachi believes you are the only one who can beat him. If he prides himself on being the best, perhaps he needs to kill you when you are better so he can rest assured he is the top ninja."

He let his words sink in. Sasuke's face made it obvious he was debating this new theory, trying to piece things together.

"Ok…maybe. But I don't have the mangekyou!"

"What does it take to achieve the new Sharingan?"

"I have to kill my best friend."

"And who is your best friend now?"

"…you."

"And you have already—"

"killed you."

Kiba could see the light of understanding in Sasuke's face. The boy had put the pieces together.

Sasuke spoke, his voice trembling. "He wouldn't have left you alive. There was no reason to. Unless he knew you and I were close…and then, he put the reality distorting jutsu on me…I couldn't tell who I was hurting. I fought and killed him, but it was really you, and he knew I would discover it was you, and…"

Kiba finished for him. "And so, after discovering you had killed your best friend, your Mangekyou was activated."

Placing his forehead into his hands, Sasuke shuddered. He whispered through his fingers. "But why would Itachi do that?"

"To give you power, make you an equal. He wants a real fight."

The black-haired boy's shoulders began to shake. If Kiba hadn't known him better, he would have thought Sasuke was crying. Instead, Kiba saw that his love was shaking with emotion, trying to suppress his rage and hurt. Wrapping two arms around the smaller boy, Kiba just waited.

Eventually the shaking calmed and Sasuke sat up.

"I can't use the Sharingan on you, Kiba."

This pissed Kiba off. For every two steps he and Sasuke took forward, Sasuke always managed to leap a million steps behind.

"Goddamnit, why not!"

If the Uchiha was surprised at Kiba's outburst, he didn't show it.

"Kiba—it isn't safe. I didn't even realize I had it. I don't know how to use it or control it, and there is no one to practice on. Without the practice, I might hurt you—critically—and I am not willing to take that risk."

"Fuck you, Sasuke!"

"Why?"

"You really will never let me get close! You are so wrapped up in 'protecting' me that you end up pushing me away! If you really believed in me, if you knew me at all, you'd know how strong I am! I am prepared to take the risk so I can try to learn how to be with you! That is how much I love you! And you…you must not really love me because you aren't willing to risk anything."

"Oh Kiba…"

" 'Oh Kiba' what?"

Dark, pleading eyes looked to Kiba's own eyes. Both were filled with pain. Both boys wanted to help the other but they couldn't get on the same page. Sasuke could see the tears forming in Kiba's eyes. He knew Kiba was just trying to help, was trying to understand him. Part of him, deep inside, craved the other boy's understanding so much it hurt. That part wanted someone to talk to, someone who could comfort him, could know what it had been like to be so alone all these years. He knew that of anyone, Kiba was the one he could trust the most with this. But it was so dangerous, and uncontrolled. He hadn't been lying—he hadn't even recognized the change in his own Sharingan. Sasuke knew Kiba wasn't going to like his answer, but he couldn't see any other way.

"Kiba…I'm sorry. I can't."

He watched as his lover's eyes grew cold and distant.

"You must not love me the way I love you." Kiba stood up. "I'm sorry for wasting my time, Sasuke." He started getting dressed quickly, yanking clothes on. "Next time I need to be more careful who I give my heart—and my life—to." He watched Sasuke wince. "This is hard for me, Sasu, but it is obviously what you've wanted for so long. You couldn't have it happen fast enough." Kiba was putting on his sandals and looking around for anything he might be forgetting. "You are a bastard, and if you enjoy being alone so much, just warn the other person next time."

Kiba went to the door. When he opened it, Akamaru was waiting, obviously confused.

"I'm going to need some time to get over this, so please don't call or come by to see me."

"Kiba, wait."

But the boy was fueled by hurt and his failure to break down Sasuke's walls.

"No. I've been waiting this whole time, and I am tired of it. If you aren't going to let me in, then it is time I started moving on."

"No—Kiba, please—" Their eyes met. Sasuke was frozen in place, unable to comprehend what was happening.

"Goodbye, Sasu." His parting words were whispered, Kiba's voice so choked up with tears he could barely spit the words out.

And then Sasuke was alone, and the apartment felt very, very quiet.

0 0 0 0 0

"You did WHAT!"

But Sakura didn't wait for answer. She hit Sasuke over the head, hard. Watching him rub the bump forming on his skull, she realized it was the first time she could ever remember hitting him. Still, she didn't feel bad about it.

And hour before, Sasuke had shown up at her doorstep, shaking and looking the most depressed she had ever seen him. Although it still made her twinge a little with jealousy to know Kiba caused Sasuke to get so upset (what was it about that boy that was so appealing?), she was honored that the normally private Uchiha had come to talk to her.

And so he had been talking to her until his voice grew thin, telling her about Kiba, about his love, his need for revenge and the Mangekyou. She got the suspicion that he had wanted her to reaffirm the decision that Avenging was the most important thing and that the breaking up was an unfortunate bi-product.

The sore knob on his head let him know she felt otherwise.

"I let him walk out the door."

She hit him again. "SASUKE-KUN! You _DOBE_!"

"Sakura, please stop hitting me."

"I can't help it. I just… after all you've been through—"

"Exactly. After all I have been through, I can't settle down with a boyfriend when I haven't fulfilled my destiny."

Sakura glared at the Uchiha. "What I was going to say is that, after all you have been through, how can you be so fucking stupid as to—yet again, I might add—let the…the best thing that has every happened to you walk out the door. You are so…selfish!"

"How am I being selfish? I am trying to make sure he stays safe!"

"Sasuke, Kiba is a ninja. He is never safe. If anything, you may have had more of a chance to protect him. He is still going to go on dangerous missions, he is still going to put his life on the line every day and you shutting him out of your life isn't going to change that!"

"But he can't fight Itachi."

"He never asked you to fight Itachi. He just wanted to understand, which is something we have all wanted to do. All he wanted was to be let in, but you were too block-headed to figure that out."

"He wanted me to use the Mangekyou."

"So what? Can't you see how far he was willing to go for you? How can you just throw that away?"

"I'm not throwing it away! I just—"

"You are just too much selfish to let someone help you."

Sasuke sat back in his chair, silent. He wasn't going to win this battle, he knew. Secretly, he didn't want to win anymore. He wasn't sure whether or not she was right, but there wasn't enough time. When he had recounted the story, he could hear how many times he had been cruel to Kiba. He had pushed the boy and crushed him and even killed him and Kiba had kept coming back.

"Sasuke-kun." Sakura's soft voice pulled him back from his thoughts. He looked at her, face tired and drawn. "You will never find someone as loving and loyal to you as Kiba. You know that, right?"

Yes, he knew. Like Akamaru and all their nin-dogs, the members of the Inuzuka clan were fiercely loyal. Once they latched on to someone, it took a lot took a lot, a whole lot, to break that emotional tie. In his heart, Sasuke worried that maybe this past time had pushed Kiba too far. After all, the boy had left him this time.

"Sakura, I have to go."

"Ok. But think about whether or not you are really ready to lose Kiba. I think if you let him go this time, there will not be another chance."

"I know."

"If…if you want to try the Mangekyou, I will help you. I will keep him from dying."

"Tsunade would never allow that."

"Then we wouldn't tell her."

This startled Sasuke. He stared at his teammate. For years now, she had been training with Tsunade. This was a girl who never broke the rules, who always tried to impress her superiors.

"Sakura, I won't ask you to do that."

"I know, Sasuke."

"Then why…why are you offering to do this?"

"Because I love you. Still. More as a friend but it is still there, and I'll be damned if I watch you destroy the one thing…the one person who can bring you happiness."

There was no reply, so Sasuke nodded and left.

0 0 0 0 0

Sasuke walked through the village. He knew what he needed to do but he was scared. After all, he had written the list—he had tangible proof that ultimately he and Kiba would never work out, no matter how much he may want it. So it must be better to leave it now, leave it like this. He reminded himself over and over of the reasons. No children. Risk of hurting Kiba. Revenge, revenge, revenge. In the past, a mantra of revenge had always helped him get focused when he needed it. This time however, it was doing little to soothe him.

After all, love is not something he had ever had to suppress before. Love was not something he had dealt with. Now it was a giant barrier, keeping him from his destiny. And the worst part about it was that he wasn't sure he wanted to remove that barrier. For every memory of Itachi, there was one of Kiba holding him while he slept. For every memory of his parents, he had one of Kiba caressing his skin. And when he remembered Kiba's body after he had beaten the life out of it, he also remembered the forgiveness in the Inuzuka's face, and the way the boy had felt inside of him.

No matter what he tried, nothing could get Kiba out of his mind. In fact, Sasuke realized that for the past month, he had though more about Kiba than he had about revenge.

With that realization, Sasuke began to run.

0 0 0 0 0

"I'm sorry Sasuke, he doesn't wish to see you." Shino stood with his back straight and his face resolute.

"Shino, I need to talk to Kiba, just tell me how I can find him." Sasuke had never given the Aburame much thought, but now that the boy was in front of him, eyes hidden by sunglasses, Sasuke felt uneasy. He had heard stories about the kikai and Shino's uncanny ability to think several steps ahead of his enemy. The boy might even rival Shikamaru in cleverness.

"Go home, Sasuke."

The Uchiha shifted uncomfortably. He was used to people giving him what he wanted. Most of the ninja his age in the village wouldn't stand up to him like this. And although he had been the number one rookie, he wasn't sure how well a fight with Shino would go. With bugs so tiny and in such large quantities, how would he use his Sharingan as a defense?

"Shino… I am about to lose him." It was minute, but Sasuke sensed a drop in the Aburame's guard.

"You didn't lose him, Uchiha. You threw him away."

The words were meant to sting, and they did. But instead of trying to hide his pain form the insult, Sasuke stepped out on a ledge and showed Shino his pain. He realized that this was a boy just as stoic as he was. The only way he had a chance—and it was a minute chance—at convincing the boy was to show how serious he was. He had to let his own guard down and wear his heart on his sleeve. It was a very uncomfortable thing for the Uchiha.

"I know I did. Several times. And each time Kiba stayed and he accepted me. Each time Kiba worked hard to help me, and I…spit in his face with my actions. To be honest, I am not sure I can even be in a relationship with Kiba, even now. I don't know what the future holds. But I cannot move forward knowing I have hurt him this much. I…need to right this."

Shino didn't move, and the two boys stared at each other long and hard. Well, Shino stared and Sasuke just looked at the sunglasses and prayed that somehow Shino could see how serious he was. Sasuke was so involved with the staring match he failed to hear a small thud as someone dropped to the ground behind him. But he registered the person's presence when there was a kunai at his neck. A familiar aroma surrounded him and Sasuke knew who held him at knife point.

"Kiba."

A voice, choked with sobs, answered him. "W-why…did you come here? I told you to leave me alone?"

The kunai wavered at Kiba fought to hold in his tears, and it lightly bit into Sasuke's neck, drawing blood. But the Uchiha didn't move or complain.

Kiba spoke again. "I just…I don't understand how you can expect me to listen to you at all. How much more do you want from me? I've…I've given you all of me and it wasn't enough, so why the hell are you here?"

There was no answer, but Sasuke closed his eyes in pain. With his eyes shut, he couldn't see Shino vanishing, but he felt the Aburame's presence leave. Still, he was sure the boy was somewhere, watching and protecting his teammate.

"Kiba, I am sorry."

"That isn't enough."

"It is all that I have."

"Then I'm sorry, Sasu."

Ignoring the kunai, Sasuke turned around. His skin was cut as he turned, causing his neck to bleed. The kunai blade hadn't had a lot of pressure, so it only hurt but didn't cut anything vital. He felt the weapon fall as he turned, and the holder of it sink as well. The Uchiha caught his love, sinking gently to the ground with his crying love in his arms.

"Kiba." It was just a name, but when he said it, it was filled with every emotion he had felt—love, turmoil, sorrow and need.

"P-please, Sasu…I don't think I can d-do it again. I can't go through this again."

"You won't have to, my love."

Two feral eyes, filled with streaming tears, looked up. Limp in his arms, Kiba felt almost small, and Sasuke found he liked that. For once, he felt like the adult. This whole time, Kiba had been taking care of him. But broken down and defeated, lying in the road, Kiba, his Kiba, needed him now. It reminded him of how he met Kiba, how their relationship had started. He remembered carrying the boy home after their fight, the Inuzuka passed out from exhaustion. This was like this but so, so much better. Warmth passed through him as he realized this is what his lover had been feeling for him all along. This knowledge, knowing he could care for Kiba, he could protect the boy…it was what he had been missing.

"B-but you j-just said you weren't sure if we could—"

"I was wrong. I know now. We can make this work."

Kiba's face filled with a guarded hope. _He never tries to hide who he is, what he is feeling, _Sasuke thought. His arms pulled Kiba in closer, moving the boy's face into his chest. He could feel tears soaking through his shirt but he didn't care. The shudders gently wracking through his boyfriend's shoulders calmed him. He was sure now. This was the only way it could be.

"Kiba, I promise you. This is…this is my promise of a lifetime." He felt Kiba shake with something he could only assume was laughter at him using one of Naruto's beloved phrases. "I promise to never put you through this again."

Two weak, shaky arms circled around his waist.

Whispering, more to himself than to the boy he was comforting, Sasuke finally admitted the truth.

"I can't live without you."

0 0 0 0 0

A/N. Awwwwwww. You have to admit, it is cute as hell. What? You are worried it is done? Almost, but not quite. But there won't be anymore "I love you but we can never be together!" Storyline. That is resolved. YAY! As always, please leave me some reviews. Pointers always welcome!


	22. Chapter 22

Disclaimer—I don't own Naruto.

A/N: OMG. I am so sorry, I did not mean to put this aside for so long. I started a new job and my life has been non stop since then. It is starting to calm down as I am starting to get the swing of things, but still, I am very, very sorry it has taken me so long to finish my first fic!

0 0 0 0 0

It had taken a lot of convincing, as Neji held little love for Sasuke, but Sakura had finally managed to persuade the Byuukagen user to be present. The whole thing was risky, and she wanted as much support as possible. But now the four of them were in a room and the air was thick with tension.

Neji spoke first. "Sasuke…you have never used the Mangekyou before?"

"No. In fact, we only figured out I had it based on a theory and your observations after…the incident."

Sasuke had expected Neji to flinch when he mentioned the beating—everyone who knew about it always did—but the stoic Hyuuga showed no trace of emotion.

Kiba cut in. "You see Neji, For whatever reason, Itachi continues to let Sasuke live—"at this, Sasuke winced himself at the reminder of his brother's power,"—and I began to wonder why. Then, I did some research and discovered that the Mangekyou is a horrible thing that can only be activated when the user kills his best friend. Because it gives Itachi such an advantage, I believe he not only lets Sasuke live in the hopes that they will become equal enemies, I also think he caused hallucinations so that Sasuke would, in fact, kill his best friend, even if it was on accident. You follow?" Neji nodded. "So when Sasuke beat me to the point of death under the jutsu, and then discovered I was…well, me, then his own Mangekyou was activated."

"I understand the theory, but because Sasuke hasn't tested it out, how are we even sure he has it?"

Sakura spoke. "You saw his chakra concentrating in large, uncontrolled quantities around his eyes. I can't think of any other medical reason for that kind of chakra behavior. I am sure it was the Mangekyou."

Kiba moved so that he was sitting facing Sasuke. He spoke to everyone, but his words were for his lover. "And now Sasuke is going to use it in me."

It hadn't been the theory on the Sharingan that had confused Neji, it was what they were about to do. "Kiba, Sasuke, I understand all of it. But why must you go under the jutsu? What is the point of such a dangerous trail?"

Sasuke spoke, quietly. "Kiba...wishes to share his life with me. And I, unfortunately, am a difficult person to be with. This is for us, Neji, so that Kiba might begin to have a grasp on the baggage he is picking up when he chooses me." The words were to the point, and honest. But that wasn't what Neji appreciated. He appreciated the vulnerability Sasuke showed in his open statement. He knew the Uchiha was weird and brooding, and very closed off. And although Neji felt a little confused about the relationship between Kiba and Sasuke—where did it even come from?—he knew it must be important if the Uchiha was willing to speak so frankly.

"My love?" Kiba whispered, reaching a hand out to stroke Sasuke's cheek. The boy leaned into the palm, feeling its warmth and its strength. "I'm ready."

Sakura sat beside of Sasuke, facing Kiba, ready to heal him if needed. Neji sat on the other side and together the four formed a square. Neji was going to watch with his Byuukagen for safety.

Sasuke closed his eyes and began breathing slowly. He wasn't quite sure how to activate it. He thought back carefully to his brother… what had his brother said? Had he used any seals? There was nothing for a while, and imagining his encounters with his brother began to enrage Sasuke.

But then, it came.

"Tsukuyomi!" Sasuke's eyes snapped open and Sakura saw the wheel-like Sharingan. It was different from Sasuke's normal red eyes and it frightened her to her core. These red eyes…were filled with coldness and hate. Breathing, she fought hard to remain focused.

Neji stared. He had never seen anything like this before—with his Byuukagen activated, he could see Sasuke's chakra collecting in his eyes. But the chakra was different. When he normally saw the chakra sytems within a person's body, it was a life-giving source. But the chakra rapidly building around Sasuke's red orbs was… different. It felt different. It felt dangerous.

And while those two were surprised and worried… Kiba found himself in a new world.

The sky had turned red and everything was outlined like a photograph negative. He saw a small boy, a mop of black hair and recognized his lover, only as a child. Smiling, he wanted to walk over to Sasuke, but realized he couldn't.

And then, the boy disappeared. There was another person in front of him, back facing him. He instinctively recognized the long, black hair and slender, agile body.

Itachi.

Kiba felt his body moving forward even though his mind was screaming to run away.

Kiba was startled to feel his mouth open and words come out of it. He realized that he…was the young Sasuke!

"Can you help me with my shuriken practice?"

Itachi turned around, impatience in his eyes. "I'm busy." But he motioned with his finger. Kiba felt himself move forward. Itachi raised a hand, reaching out, and Kiba felt his/Sasuke's heart freeze. But Itachi only flicked him on his forehead.

Kiba could feel the love for an older brother spreading in his young Sasuke body.

It broke his heart.

And then he saw eyes, frightening eyes, surrounded by black. Kiba screamed out.

0 0 0 0 0

It felt as if hours had passed, but Kiba couldn't place where the time had gone.

But then he was walking into a village. He knew Sasuke's memories now and recognized it at the Uchiha clan's side of town. He felt something, a presence, watching him. Glancing at the source, the top of an electicity pole, he saw the sillouette of a body. He/Sasuke blinked and the person was gone.

_What was that? I thought I saw somebody there._

It was then he realized the streets were empty. There was no one around.

_The lights are out…it's not time for sleep yet._

Walking, he rounded a corner.

_This is…_

There were bodies everywhere. Bodies he recognized, bodies of people he knew. Blood was splattered on the walls and ground, painting the village in crimson.

He began running down the street, panic filling his small body.

_What is going on?_

Kiba/Sasuke stopped when he recognized a body. It was Shizu and his Auntie Shizue. He recalled having spoken to them earlier that day. Now they were both dead, lying at his feet. The desire to scream rose in his throat, and the small feet began to run quickly home.

He approached his own home, Kiba heard his/Sasuke's tiny voice call out.

_Father… Mother!_

There was no answer. His small hand opened the door to see that no lights were on and the main room was empty.

_Father? Mother?_ He took a few steps in. _Are you here?_

The small boy bent down and removed his shoes out of habit. He began to pad quietly from room to room, calling out for his silent parents. Kiba felt himself shudder from the fear, already knowing what was going to happen and yet unable to stop himself/Sasuke from his search. He walked outside and heard a noise behind large double doors.

_Someone's in there._

He walked up to it, intending to open it, but his body was frozen with fear. Everything was wrong with the situation and he could feel it—why weren't his parent's answering him? And now someone dangerous—he could feel the danger—was behind the door. Another noise came from behind the door.

_Move…_

But his hand shook in the air, unable to open the door.

_Move…_

He willed it to shift, to push on the wood and discover the inside of the room, but still the hand remained frozen in fear.

_Move!_

With that, he shoved open the door and stepped into the dark room.

He immediately wished he hadn't opened the door. Kiba, inside of Sasuke's body, felt his own grief at what he witnessed through the young boy's eyes.

Sasuke's mother was lying on her back, dead. His father was also dead and draped across her chest. Fresh blood flowed from them, staining the wood floor.

_Father! Mother!_

From the shadows behind the bodies, a pair of sandal-clad feet stepped out. Sasuke gasped in fear. He looked up to see the face of the owner of the sandals. There, carrying a sword still wet with blood, was…Itachi.

0 0 0 0

Sakura watched Kiba's body begin to tremble and shake. Only a second had passed, but she could already tell his vitals were rapidly escalating. Just what was this jutsu, that could have Kiba's body shaking with paralyzing fear in a mere second? Her first instinct was to halt the whole process—after all, they had agreed that if it became too dangerous, it would stop. The Inuzuka obviously did not carry the Sharingan—the only defense against the mental onslaught of Mangekyou. However, Sakura looked to Neji. His white eyes met hers, wide with awe, and he shook his head slightly—they didn't need to stop it. Yet.

Shuddering, Sakura began to collect her chakra in her hands. She didn't know what was happening between the two lovers, but she knew that her job was to keep Kiba alive. And soon—very soon but what she was witnessing—he was going to require every bit of healing she could give him.

0 0 0 0 0

_Brother!_

Itachi just stood there, staring impassively.

Brother, Father and Mother were…

But Sasuke didn't finish the sentence. He couldn't. The pain in his chest was too immense.

_Why? Why…_ He looked to his brother, hoping for something, anything to comfort him. _Who did this?_

Instead of words of comfort, a shuriken flew through the air, tore through the young boy's shoulder and imbedded itself in the wood. Itachi never missed. He was the best at shurikens, it was why he had been bothering him for help for months. Itachi never missed…he had meant to hit his brother. Kiba winced as he felt the impact of realization hit the small boy's mind. His shirt tore at the shoulder and blood began to trickle down his arm. The shuriken…the wet sword…

Itachi.

_Brother…what are you…_

His brother stared at him, ice building a wall in those bottomless black orbs. They stared at each other for a minute, but for Kiba and the young boy's body he inhabited, it felt like an eternity.

_What are you doing, brother?_

Finally, Itachi spoke.

_Foolish little brother._ He closed his eyes, but Kiba couldn't tell if it was from pain…or annoyance. Having met he Itachi, his heart shuddered when he thought it was probably the latter.

_Mangekyou, Sharingan!_

And then Itachi's eyes changed, they were…just like Sasuke's had been. Kiba cringed, knowing what was about the happen. But even knowing, he still felt the child's chest freeze, the pain crawling across the whole body (making him aware, suddenly, of his own body's—his real body's—pain).

He was back out in the street, alone again. He saw Itachi. He saw his brother killing, cutting down everyone. Bodies fell at him, their faces twisted in agony. The young boy was paralyzed, fear. Fear of his brother, fear of the bodies whose lifeless fingers seemed to be reaching out to him.

Sasuke began to scream.

Shuriken flew through the air and blood splattered all of the walls, running like small rivers at his feet. He tried to run.

_My legs…_

They wouldn't move. The bodies kept coming, kept towering around the young boy. It was too much. It was too much! Oh God, why wouldn't it stop?

0 0 0 0 0

Neji was in awe. Kiba's whole body seemed to be… infused with chakra. Sasuke's chakra, to be exact. In all of his experience, he had never seen a jutsu like this one. He could actually see the chakra coming out from Sasuke's eyes and wrapping, writhing around Kiba's body. Kiba's own chakra circulatory system was going wild, squeezing and contracting around Kiba's vital organs.

Neji nodded at Sakura, who began to heal.

Now he could see three chakras molding and twisting…fighting…in the Inuzuka's body.

The scariest part about it was the time. Only two seconds had passed, and Kiba's body was already fighting for life.

What a terrible jutsu. The worst part was, Neji couldn't think of a single defense against it.

0 0 0 0 0

Grabbing his head, screaming and shaking, the young boy began to will himself out of the vision.

_Stop!_

He closed his eyes, tears and snot streaming down his face.

_Brother! Don't show me this!_

It became quiet, and when he opened his eyes, Kiba/Sasuke saw Itachi, standing alone in the street, bodies littered everywhere. His sword was ready in his hand.

_Why? Why did you do this, brother?_

Visions of his clansmen, he father's police comrades, rushing at them filled with anger assaulted his mind. But the young boy knew what fate had in store for them.

_No…_

But they couldn't hear him, they kept rushing in.

_No…_

And they were all cut down, mutilated in front of his young eyes by his brother.

Kiba felt the young Sasuke remember talking to his aunt that very morning about Itachi, about how talented Itachi was, about how the whole clan was proud of Itachi. Itachi. Itachi.

Itachi.

Now he saw his aunt, cold and dead in front of her store, her friend next to her.

_Mister, Auntie…_

Kiba felt himself screaming, felt Sasuke screaming. He almost imagined he could hear their two voices melting into one.

And then they were back in the room at the house, his father and mother on their knees in front of their son. In front of his brother, sword raised high in the air.

_Father, Mother._

The sword began to descend, as if in slow motion.

_Don't brother!_

But the downward arc of the blade continued.

_Don't do that to Father and Mother!_

He watches the final descent of the steel, sees the spray of blood, the crumple of bodies. His parent's bodies. His whole vision swam red and he could feel Itachi's jutsu leaving his body. Kiba wanted desperately for it to be over, but it wasn't.

He felt his body collapse on the floor, drool slipping out of his mouth. Kiba was still alert, but he could feel the young mind of Sasuke breaking.

The tiny boy whispered, barely audible. _Why? Why did you…_

A voice, cold and deep, answered. _To see what I was capable of._

_What you were capable of? That was it? You killed everyone for that reason?_

Sasuke watched his brother close his eyes, as if deep in thought. Kiba felt the young boy struggle to rise. He felt the anger. _What the hell… Kiba_ tried to fight it, but he felt the young boy's intent. He wanted to stop the child but was powerless. _Don't screw around!_ He yelled. With that, Sasuke charged his brother, rage fueling him.

And was stopped, Itachi's fist in his stomach. Blood spurted from his mouth as the air was knocked out of him. He dropped to the ground.

Sasuke was mere feet from his dead father's face. Tears began to flood his eyes. And then his view was blocked as his brother stepped in front of his face.

_I'm scared…_he thought.

Finding energy despite the soreness he felt, Kiba/Sasuke scrambled away from the sandals.

_I'm scared!_ He thought again. It was enough to motivate him, and Kiba felt the young Sasuke running for his life. He ran out of the house in his bare feet, stumbling through the body-strewn streets of the Uchiha district.

_Don't kill me!_ He screamed.

Panic blurred his vision as he ran.

But he felt it, felt him, and stopped running.

_Don't kill me…_

He waited for the deathblow, so scared, trembling. But it never came.

_You are not even worth killing._

It hit him hard. Itachi might as well have cut him down with the sword.

_Foolish little brother…_

That voice, that had used to be so warm and comforting, had now become the most frightening voice in all of the world.

Sasuke looked at him. Kiba saw through his eyes, looked into Itachi's eyes.

And saw something.

_If you wish to kill me, hate me, detest me…And survive in an unsightly way…_

_Run. Run and cling to life. _

Sasuke ran.

Kiba understood.

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A/N: Ok, ok! Only one or two more chapters to go, depending on how busy I become. I swear, I did not mean to go so long without updating. I am an awful, awful girl! In my fantasies, of course, Kiba would be there to, uh…. Pleasantly punish me for my transgressions. Or Neji. Or Sasuke. Or Shikamaru. Or Shino. I don't even need to continue. Oh god, I am a naughty pervert going to a special place in hell.

Still, I hope you enjoyed this chappie. Took me longer because I hunted down an old episode on my computer so I could get this scene just right. And of course, I got delayed watching old Narutos while I searched for a Sasuke memory one.

Anyway, I hope I didn't lose any readers with my absence, I hope you are enjoying it and please please please review. I am a review whore, I've discovered.

Until next time (hopefully soon….) , Jenny


	23. Chapter 23

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. I am currently very disappointed in the current story arc (Curry of Life). But all of them are just so lovable and the manga remains awesome that my love for Naruto is not faltering.

A/N: I didn't get any reviews for last chapter, which was a little disappointing considering the amount of work I put into getting the dialogue word-for-word with the series. I guess though, that since it was not an original idea or something, and just a replay of the series, it did not really warrant any reviews.

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Sakura was panicking. Kiba's vitals had been all over the place—she had never seen anything like it before. His heart would race and then drastically slow down, only to speed up again. All over his organs were failing him—as soon as she would restart one, another would stop. Her chakra was almost taxed, her mind at it's breaking point. Her body was sweaty and shaky, like she had been healing for hours.

It had only been five seconds sine Sasuke had begun the justu.

In those two seconds, Kiba's body went through decade of trauma, it seemed. And while she wanted to sit back an understand it all, there was no time. She was completely and utterly focused on keeping Kiba alive. Because having Kiba alive was the only way she knew of to save Sasuke, and Sasuke's happiness was everything to her.

She felt Kiba's chest heave—he was trying to gasp. Alarmed, she looked with her chakra into his chest cavity again.

His heart was still beating.

But not strongly.

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Neji watched as the justu finished. Before, he had seen what appeared to be infinite amounts of chakra coming from Sasuke. But when Kiba's body twitched, all of the chakra disappeared as if the jutsu had never happened. While he watched Sakura desperately try to heal the Inuzuka, he himself caught Sasuke as the boy fell to the ground.

He could hear Sakura grinding her teeth as she furiously worked to keep Kiba alive. Looking over, he watched Kiba's body fight to cling on to life.

Disengaging his Byuukagen, Neji studied the face of the boy in his arms. Eyes closed, mouth slightly parted, skin pale…he could see it, just a bit. He could see something in that face worth the trouble Kiba had gone through. Worth all the turmoil and the struggles. Passed out, Sasuke looked beautiful, some of his innocence regained in his vulnerable state. Sasuke's face was caught in between a child's and a man's, a demon and an angel…the perfect mixture of sinful grace. For a minute, Neji was jealous of Kiba, for he knew the boy must see this face often. God knew no one else ever got to see the Uchiha in such a compromised position. Sasuke strutted around, all arrogance and cold, never letting anyone past his thick wall.

But there, there in that room…Neji caught a glimpse of what Kiba loved in the Uchiha.

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Kiba was alive, but just barely. Sakura was literally pouring all of her own chakra into the boy to keep his system from shutting down. If he didn't improve soon, she was going to run out of chakra.

And that would mean trouble.

Tsunade didn't know they were doing this. She would never have allowed Kiba to place his life on the line for a jutsu that no one knew about. Sakura could remember what the jutsu had done to Kakashi, a skilled jounin with his own Sharingan protection. She had wanted to help, but now that Kiba was dying under her hands, she couldn't help but doubt herself—had she made the right decision promoting this?

"Neji, I need you here."

She glanced over and caught the Hyuuga holding Sasuke delicately with a look in his open white eyes of…_longing_? Was Neji actually looking at Sasuke with longing? But there was no time for her to debate what she was seeing.

"HYUUGA. I NEED YOU HERE. NOW." Her forceful words snapped Neji out of whatever place he had been in and he rushed to her side.

"What can I do, Sakura?"

She was nervous—she knew of this technique, but had never tried it. Hell, Tsunade had never tried it. Then again, the Hokage had never needed to. But she was about to give, and then Kiba would die. This whole thing had been a gamble…why shouldn't she push her luck just a little further?

"Neji, listen carefully. Place your right hand on Kiba's forehead." She watched as Neji followed her instructions. "Now, slowly move your left hand to my right. I will lift off my hand and we are going to hold hands, tightly. My left hand will remain on Kiba's abdomen."

Neji followed her instructions quickly. If he was curious about what she was going to do, it didn't show in his face.

"Ok…on the count of three…grab my hand. You will feel a big pull because I am borrowing your chakra."

"Hn. Have you ever done this before, Sakura?"

"No, Neji…I haven't."

"Ok."

They locked gazes for an instant, fear and adrenaline coursing through their veins. But there wasn't any time for hesitation.

"One…"

They moved their hands close to one another.

"Two…"

Their fingertips touched, trembling.

"Three."

Their fingers interlaced, gripping hard. Sakura closed her eyes, focusing her energy. It was the most difficult thing she had ever done. Half of her was devoted to drawing Neji's chakra out of his body and commingling it with her own. The other half of her had to forcefully, yet with precision, push that mixed chakra into Kiba's body, then back into Neji's hand, causing a circular flow of healing chakra. On top of that, she soon discovered why this technique was not used—Neji's chakra burned her. When it entered her body, it burned, and she could feel her own system trying to reject the foreign chakra. It took endurance on her part to endure the pain enough to continue the conversion. If she stopped sending chakra into Kiba, not only would he die but she would suffer injuries from her own chakra overload.

Sweat was forming on her brow. She heard a moan and glanced at Neji. His eyes were closed and he was swaying, but he didn't loosen his grip on her hand. Losing chakra at a fast rate was taking its toll on him as well.

But…

It was working. Kiba's system was slowly beginning to stabalize.

_If I can just hold on a little longer_… she thought.

_Kiba…we'll save you._

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Kiba was in hell, he was sure of it. Somewhere during the jutsu, Sasuke had lost him and now he was in hell.

His whole body felt like it was being ripped apart. He knew this feeling—he had felt it with Itachi in the woods, so long ago…Had it been that long ago?

Where Kiba was, time no longer meant anything.

He had seen his lover Sasuke, had been his lover, feeling the torment and agony of years of solitude. He felt as if he wad watched his own parents die before him, killed by the brother he admired the most.

Itachi.

How foolish Kiba had been…how they all had been. If anyone had known what Itachi had been like that night, if anyone had witnessed what Sasuke had seen…they wouldn't be able to remain sane. To watch one boy ruthlessly wipe out an entire clan…

And for what?

Kiba was taken back to that night repeatedly in his mind. He watched the blood, felt it spray on to him, each drop burning a hole in his skin.

He was so absorbed in Sasuke that he was no longer sure where Sasuke began and Kiba ended.

And underneath the physical pain, underneath the repetitive memories…Kiba could feel his sanity breaking.

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Sakura gasped as she broke the chakra chain. Her palm was seared from Neji's chakra. She watched the Hyuuga lie down beside her, his chest sharply rising as he struggled to catch his breath. Neither of them could move. But Kiba was stable in front of them, his face calm, his breathing even and his heart beating healthfully. Even his eyes were open, black slits staring at the ceiling. He hadn't said anything yet, and Sakura felt a need to give the Inuzuka a chance to digest.

But after two minutes he still hadn't spoken, or even turned to look at her.

"Kiba?" She whispered.

But he kept looking up, mouth slightly agape.

"Kiba?" She said it louder, hoping maybe he just hadn't heard her the first time.

There was no response.

"Kiba! Answer me!" Sakura was panicked. The boy was physically fine, but there was no response. It pained her to move, but she crawled over to him and waved her hand over his eyes.

He didn't blink.

There are limits, Tsunade had explained while training her, to a med nin's healing capabilities. Someone with great amounts of chakra could do incredible healing feats. They could regrow tissue, sometimes even organs. They could sew together a heart ripped into shreds and help it to beat again. Some medical ninjas could even, very rarely, bring someone back from death (afterall, Tsunade had brought back Naruto and Kiba both). But a person's mind was something no amount of skill or chakra could heal. If someone's mind had been broken…it could not be repaired.

Looking at Kiba's blank, unresponding eyes…Sakura knew that Kiba was broken. A vegetable.

If she had had any more energy, she would have wept. Instead, she just closed her eyes and lay down beside Neji. Neither she nor he were very close, their teams having little to to with each other, but the Hyuuga offered her his embrace and she took it. They mourned together, each too exhausted to even shed a tear.

But then, just as Sakura was about to pass out from the fatigue, she heard a scratching noise.

It was soft and slow, and awkwardly paced.

She didn't even have the energy to sit up, but somehow she managed to roll over enough to see Sasuke. He was pulling himself along the floor toward Kiba. She felt Neji turn to watch as well.

"S-Sasuke?"

The Uchiha turned to her, his eyes gleaming with unshed tears.

"Is he alive? D-did I kill him…again?" She could see the panic in his face.

"No! No, you didn't kill him. He's alive. But…"

"But what?"

"Sasuke…Kiba isn't…he isn't responding."

"What do you mean, he isn't responding?"

But she could see in his features and the way they twisted that Sasuke already knew. He knew what had happened.

"Sasuke…I'm so sorry. I tried my hardest."

"Sakura, Neji…thank you."

And with that, Sasuke began to pull himself toward his lover again. When he finally made it next to Kiba, Sasuke bit his own tongue to keep from crying out. The blood tasted like metal in his mouth. He looked into those eyes…those eyes that had been so full of life and love and compassion and…forgiveness. Now all of that was gone, and all that was left was a blank stare.

Grunting, Sasuke heaved himself on top of Kiba. He didn't care about what Neji or Sakura saw. He somehow instinctively knew what he needed to do. The Uchiha lay his body flat on top of his lover's, forming himself to familiar curves. He buried his face in Kiba's hair, his lips next to the Inuzuka's ear.

"Kiba, I know you can hear me." Sasuke was barely whispering. He knew Sakura and Neji couldn't hear what he was saying.

"Kiba. Feel my warmth. Feel my heart beat. Feel the breath coming in and out of my chest. Feel those things, and come back to them." A few tears escaped, tricking down Sasuke's cheek and into Kiba's mess of brown hair.

"My love…it is ok now. As I took care of you, and you took care of me, I shall take care of you again. I understand now that we are destined to forever care for each other, fixing each other, making each other stronger, better. I can never be better…can never beat my brother…without you."

Sasuke felt closely. He could feel Kiba's heart and breath beginning to match his own. Their chests rose and fell together. The gentle thumping came in unison. It was calming, reassuring to feel another person's body aligned so similarly to his own.

"Kiba. Come back to my warmth. Follow my voice. Feel our hearts beating together. You are safe now."

The skin below his was beginning to warm.

"You are my love. You are Inuzuka Kiba. You are a strong ninja who fights like an animal. You care for Akamaru, the most loyal dog in Konoha. You saved me, Kiba."

Sasuke was too tired to continue. He relaxed his whole body on top of Kiba's, letting himself sink into his lover's flesh.

"I love you, Kiba."

Blackness threatened to overtake him. Just as he closed his eyes, Sasuke felt two arms circle around his waist.

"I love you, Sasuke. I am never letting you go again."

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A/N: One more chapter, so for the love all things Naruto, pleeeeaaaaase review my fic. My writer's ego is in serious need of stroking, folks. Because I am worried that, after putting the fic aside for so long, I've lost my touch and that things aren't flowing as well, or aren't as interesting anymore. Please feel free to critique the fic—I can take it. Is it too slow? Too sappy? Let me know!

One more chappie left!


	24. Chapter 24

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

A/N: And so it comes to an end. Warning, Lemon ahead!

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Neji was the first one able to move. He shifted his weight and moved a sleeping Sakura off him. It felt a bit awkward realizing how…easily he and the female ninja had slept together, but considering the events of the previous night, he couldn't blame either of them.

It was quiet, and the moon was still out. All of Konoha was asleep, it seemed, except for him. His body was still sore from Sakura draining his chakra from him and having a mix of his own, Sakura's and even faint hits of Kiba's shoved back into him. Though the desperate measure had worked, the pain he had felt was proof that chakra was not meant to be mixed or shared.

There are small gifts one receives when the awake while the rest of the world sleeps. For Neji, it was a chance to watch the two lovers embracing each other. Sasuke's body draped easily over the Inuzuka's. He watched their bodies rise slightly in the dark as they breathed heavily. He would never have pictured the two of them together—after all, though it was not taboo, it was rare for males of Konoha to date. Also, Sasuke had been so standoffish and arrogant that Neji had never imagined anyone being able to fall in love with the stoic Uchiha. But looking at the two boys connected in such harmony, the Hyuuga realized he could not imagine it any other way.

Neji knelt quietly and gently shook Sakura, covering her mouth so she wouldn't cry out and disturb the two slumbering lovers. Her eyes went wide at being awoken in the dark, but she was silent and calmed when she realized it was Neji. She blushed, remembering how she had passed out in his arms and was thankful it was dark and he couldn't see her cheeks.

"Sakura, go home. You need to recover." Neji whispered to her. It was true—she was still exhausted and her body was cramping from sleeping on the floor. Also, though Neji couldn't have known, she needed time—a lot of it—to deal with the relationship between Sasuke and Kiba. She was happy for them both, she knew, but she also was discovering her own immense sadness. With all that she had seen, Sakura knew there was no longer any chance for her in the future with Sasuke. They had been together, and she had known it when they broke up, but…this just made it so definite. She needed to organize and confront her feelings about this permanent change in their relationship.

She looked into the Hyuuga's eyes—at night they were almost like moons themselves. She leaned in, whispering directly into his ear. She saw her breath caused goosebumps on his skin, but the closeness was necessary so as to not wake the other two boys in the room. "I can't leave—what if Kiba begins to fail again? I need to be here to save him. Sasuke would never forgive me if…"

"I'll stay."

Sakura looked at the Hyuuga, confused. Why would he want to stay? He didn't even like either of the boys particularly. He had just agreed to help out, and staying was going beyond the call of duty. Plus, how could he help if Kiba needed medical attention?

"Why?"

Neji wasn't sure of how to answer. He wasn't even sure he knew why he wanted to stay. Something in Sasuke's face had changed him a little, and he wanted a chance to watch the Uchiha a little more. Neji knew that his first impression of the Sharingan user was wrong, and felt a need to see how fate was changing his perceptions.

"Because you need sleep—the healing you did yesterday was immense. I am better recovered and can react faster if needed. I assure you, if Kiba needs help, I will come and get you. I promise. Go home. Sleep. I will stand guard."

Too tired to push the issue, Sakura nodded. She got up silently and let herself out the door of Sasuke's empty living room. They had cleared his floor in preparation and it did not resemble a home currently. Neji crawled over to a wall hidden in shadows, leaning back against it for support. Hidden by the dark, he was able to watch the two boys undisturbed.

He fell asleep studying the two bodies, so peaceful and trusting together…

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A small noise woke Neji, but his ninja training helped him remain silent. He looked around the apartment, trying to sense out the source of noise. He found it—and it wasn't what he expected.

In the faint light of the moon, Neji's practiced eyes saw something he had never seen before…two men kissing each other. Instead of repulsing him, it fascinated him. Neji stared as Sasuke kissed Kiba. He watched as their lips and tongues played on each other, exploring and teasing.

_They must think no one is here._

He knew he should say something, make his presence known. But something in him yearned to see how…how it worked. Neji realized that he wanted to watch them as they loved each other.

_Does that make me a….pervert?_

But it didn't. Neji wasn't watching the two boys out of lust. It was pure curiosity, him wanting to see and learn about something he himself had yet to experience—love.

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Sasuke was bracing himself over Kiba on one arm, his other hand toughing the wild boy's face gently. His fingertips traced the lines of the red tattoos lightly, his touches mere whispers on Kiba's skin. Kiba moved his lips on Sasuke's slowly. For the first time in all their lovemaking, the two boys weren't in a hurry. Both of them, whether in memory or in real life, had been to hell and back again. Now they were just grateful for the chance to love another. They were going to take their time.

Kiba ran his hands gently up and down Sasuke's strong back, studying the muscles beneath the skin, the flesh under the pads of his fingers. He wanted to know every inch of Sasuke's body with his hands. Kiba felt a need to touch Sasuke, to verify that the boy was really there, alive, kissing him back. He now knew everything that Sasuke had been through as a child, and it broke his heart. And for as much as the Uchiha had grown, for as much face as he put on for the world, Kiba now knew there was a very delicate thread holding the brave Sharingan user together. Kiba now knew it was his job to protect that thread.

Hooking his fingers under Sasuke's shirt, Kiba began to gently tug it off. Sasuke shifted up, straddling the Inuzuka, and helped pull his shirt off. Shifting his weight back, the Uchiha helped Kiba to sit and removed the other boy's shirt as well. Sasuke wrapped his legs around Kiba, holding the boy close to him. He wound his fingers into the wild mop of brown hair, securing his hold as he began to kiss Kiba with more pressure.

Kiba opened his mouth willingly under the Uchiha.

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Neji was amazed at every movement the two made. They were continuously in synch, as if they were dancing with each other. The moonlight illuminated Sasuke's pale skin, causing him to almost glow next to Kiba's own tanned skin. Light and dark. Yin and Yang. Neji saw them as perfect compliments of each other, two halves making a whole. It was incredible watching them.

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Kiba groaned a little under Sasuke and pushed his hips up. He could feel that Sasuke was hard through their clothing. The two boys began to move together, grinding against one another slowly. It was slightly painful, the clothing chafing them slightly. But it was also deliciously sensual, the friction turning them both on. Sasuke used his grip in Kiba's hair to yank the boy's head back softly so that he could begin kissing and nibbling on his neck.

In every previous relationship Kiba had been the dominant one. He was used to being in charge. Even when he and Sasuke had first fucked, Kiba had made most of the moves, had come out as the top. But these were the moments that made him love Sasuke—these moments when Sasuke took control, forcing Kiba to yield under him. It aroused Kiba in a way he had never been before as well as letting him know that his feelings were genuinely returned—Sasuke wanted him, too.

Wrapping his arms tightly around his pale-skinned lover, Kiba let himself be controlled by Sasuke. The boy was kissing his shoulders now, tracing his tongue along Kiba's sensitive collarbone.

And then Sasuke's mouth was next to Kiba's ear. It murmured so softly that even the Inuzuka could barely make out the words…

"Neji is watching us."

Surprised, Kiba leaned back and saw red eyes staring back at him. Sharingan activated, Sasuke looked at his partner, waiting to see what move should take place yet. Kiba, on the other hand, was fighting off panic.

Those eyes. Before the previous night, Sasuke's Sharingan had never bothered him. But now…all he could see was Itachi in those eyes. A cold blooded murderer. A torturer. Cruel and unyielding. Forcing his heart to slow down, Kiba worked to confront his terror—he looked back into those red orbs, searching. He found what he needed. Under the unique color and black patterns, there was still a look of love, of control and protection. Underneath the bloodline limit was still Sasuke, his love.

Pulling Sasuke into him, he whispered back.

"Let's give him a bit of a show then, shall we?"

Sasuke just groaned in response, grinding his hips into Kiba more.

The Inuzuka used this to his advantage, grabbing the lighter boy's hips as he shifted his legs under him. Holding Sasuke securely, Kiba slowly began to stand. His strength showed as he effortlessly rose to his feet while carrying his lover with him. He turned to the wall opposite of where Neji was sitting and moved to it quickly, slamming Sasuke into it a bit. Even under the surprising moves Kiba had made, Sasuke managed to keep his hold on Kiba. The impact of being slammed into the wall pushed Kiba's erection hard against his own, causing him to groan loudly. The Inuzuka kept him pinned against the wall, slowly kissing and biting along Sasuke's neck and shoulders, while continuously grinding into the boy.

Both of them were panting, moaning, wanting to feel full flesh contact. Even though they knew the Hyuuga was watching, lust was beginning to take over completely. The need to feel each other was overwhelming.

"Kiba—"Sasuke panted out, his body aching with sexual yearning."—let me down."

Kiba released his hold on Sasuke's hips, allowing the Uchiha to slide down his body sensually. Instead of setting his feet on the ground, Sasuke kept sliding until he was on his knees in front of Kiba.

He wasn't sure why Neji was watching them, but the boy had missed many opportunities to let his presence be known. It intrigued Sasuke to know that Neji was watching. Outside of the Chuunin exam, the Hyuuga had not shown Sasuke or Kiba anything but indifference. So him remaining silent, visually intruding on this very private act… still, Sasuke knew enough about the Hyuuga to know it wasn't something perverted. And a small part of him was glad, genuinely happy, someone could witness the love he held for Kiba. It made it somehow seem more real, more pure to know someone else could see it and say it was there, a real thing.

So Sasuke decided to ignore Neji as long as Kiba was comfortable with it. He put the Hyuuga out of his mind.

Either Kiba was ok with Neji watching as well, or he had forgotten already in the passion on the moment, because he didn't stop Sasuke from unbuttoning his pants.

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Neji made a small gasp at what he saw next. One moment the two boys were pressed against the wall, moaning and grinding against each other. The next moment—all the Hyuuga could see was Kiba's naked backside as Sasuke pulled off the boy's pants. Kiba looked like a statue in the dim light. His fine muscles gleamed in moved like silk. Though Neji found he wasn't particularly turned on, he nonetheless held an appreciation for how fit Kiba was.

He couldn't see what was happening because Kiba's legs blocked his view from Sasuke. But he could see movement in the shadows and hear Kiba's breathing increase. The Inuzuka gasped and threw his head back, placing his hands on the wall in front of him to keep from falling over.

Neji watched as two hands snaked around firm hips, taking a strong hold onto Kiba's ass.

_Oh my god…_

It dawned on Neji what was going on, and….and there were no words.

0 0 0 0 0

A low growl escaped from Kiba's lips as Sasuke took him in his mouth. The skilled tongue and lips licked and sucked him, causing his knees to quake from pleasure. He could feel his orgasm building quickly. Kiba reached down a hand to stop Sasuke, to prolong the moment.

Sasuke wouldn't let him. He gripped Kiba's hips more firmly and took all of Kiba's cock into his mouth. Sasuke moved his tongue around the shaft, sucking and working the boy. He could hear Kiba calling his name, moaning out, crying out as the pleasure built in him.

"Oh God…" Kiba began to buck his hips, pushing faster into Sasuke's warm, wet mouth. He moaned and rocked, feeling it build, craving it…

"Sasu..."Kiba gasped as his climax took over his body, his cum spilling into Sasuke's eager mouth.

Sasuke licked his lover, savoring the taste, before gently guiding Kiba down beside of him, stroking the skin and face of his lover while Kiba still rode the last waves of his orgasm.

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Neji's eyes were already large, but after what he had just saw, they were wide open. Though he couldn't ever make out any of the actual act, he knew what had happened, and it had shaken him to his core. It seemed that, like all other things, Sasuke was a genius at sex as well. Kiba's moans and reactions were proof of that. In Neji's limited sexual experience he had never…felt the way it seemed like Kiba had felt.

It…it excited him to know that such a love, such a power existed between two people he knew. It also made him jealous, for he wasn't sure when where who what how to achieve that same shared love, same mutual enjoyment.

But Neji saw, as Sasuke continued to touch his lover, that the show wasn't over.

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"Kiba…" Sasuke whispered into his lover's ear. "I…want to be inside of you."

Kiba moaned, but it was obvious it was a moan of approval, so Sasuke rolled Kiba onto his belly. He then grabbed Kiba's hips and pulled them into the air. Lastly, he lifted Kiba up, placing his lover's hands on the wall for support.

He kissed the back of Kiba's spine, worshipping him with his tongue. Kiba began to shiver as the cold air hit the wet trails left by Sasuke. Sasuke reached around front and stuck his fingers in Kiba's mouth. Kiba, panting, sucked on them, licked them, relishing the feel of the Uchiha behind him.

Withdrawing his fingers, Sasuke pulled them back around. He placed them at Kiba's entrance, being careful to position his body so that Neji couldn't see everything that was happening.

Kiba moaned as Sasuke used his lubed fingers to massage him, prepping him for what was to come. He felt the Uchiha lean in close.

"Are you sure."

Kiba couldn't speak, he was so full of desire. He just nodded. And then he gasped as Sasuke slid a finger into him. Sasuke began to work that finger in and out, searching for Kiba's sensitive spot, while reaching his other hand around. His finger found Kiba, and the boy was hard again—Sasuke had to admit his lover had stamina.

He slid a second finger in, feeling the stretch. He moved slowly, wanting Kiba to enjoy adjusting. The Inuzuka was, and soon he was pushing back onto Sasuke's fingers. For fun, Sasuke tried slipping a third finger in—it went in with no problem. Kiba growled as Sasuke fucked him with his fingers, pressing in hard. Twisting his hand, Sasuke began to pump his lover until—

"Sasu!" Kiba's hips bucked—Sasuke had found the spot. Now that he knew where is was, he was ready.

Pulling his fingers our of Kiba, Sasuke positioned himself behind Kiba. The Inuzuka was pulled up enough around the wall that Sasuke was able to rest his forehead between Kiba's shoulder blades. Sasuke placed his painfully erect cock at Kiba's entrance—he wanted to be inside of him so much. Slowly…very slowly, he pushed in.

It was incredible. He knew it would never matter how many times he and Kiba fucked—it would feel unbelievable each time, like it was the first time. He felt Kiba jump under him, adjusting to being filled.

When both boys felt ready…no. When both boys felt so consumed with need, they began to move together. They moved the way true lovers move, connected and desperate at the same time.

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The lighting in the room had changed by now, and the moonlight no longer illuminated the two boys. That did not mean Neji couldn't still see. He saw the shadows of each boy, the outlines of their silhouettes as they made love. Neji watched Sasuke's hips move, their pace and their force as the boy pushed in and out of Kiba.

The Hyuuga was blushing. Although he was still completely intrigued with and in awe of the scene in front of him, he knew he should have said something a long time ago. Curiosity had gotten the better of him, and although he was amazed at the erotic show, he wasn't even sure how he would leave the apartment without letting the two boys know that he had very much invaded their privacy. It worried him.

Their fucking was very audible now, as both boys were moaning, calling out to each other, flesh smacking flesh.

Neji watched, entranced, forgetting his need to find an exit.

0 0 0 0 0

Sweat made it easier for them to move as they continued to thrust into each other. Sasuke could feel himself losing control. He reached around and roughly grabbed Kiba's hard cock, causing the Inuzuka to growl with pleasure. Kiba always did seem to love it a little (or a lot) rough. His hand began to tug, jerking his lover off as he increased their tempo. Sasuke was riding Kiba hard, losing himself in the moment. He began to call out his lover's name.

This was the boy who was willing to take all of him in. Not just in the physical act. Kiba had proven himself to Sasuke by pushing him, challenging him to open up. All along Sasuke had been terrified, sure that no one could understand the pain he had gone through and still be with him in the end. But Kiba had. Kiba had gone through the pain, had forced Sasuke to hurt him, so that he could understand and help. And here he was, after all of that, allowing Sasuke to violate him in the most intimate of ways, and still loving it, craving more.

It seemed true then, what the people said. What hadn't killed them had made them stronger. They made each other better.

Their egos had originally clashed, each refusing to recognize his own weakness.

Fate had brought them together.

Pain had taken each down a few notches. Or, in this case, many notches.

And here, now, together…they could build back up.

0 0 0 0 0

Neji watched Sasuke throw back his head and cry out into the night as he came. Kiba's own low growl came out soon after. Both boys slumped together against the wall, using it for support.

The night seemed quieter after, as if allowing the three boys, each caught up with personal thoughts, a chance to reflect and prepare before the real world began again. After all that had happened…the past twenty four hours felt like a dream to each man in the room.

0 0 0 0 0

"Kiba…lets go sleep in my bed."

Kiba turned to embrace his lover. "Ok…what do you want to do about Neji?"

The Uchiha smiled, kissing Kiba's forehead. "Let him go—he doesn't need to know we knew he was here."

"You aren't going to say anything?"

"I don't understand it, as I am sure you don't. But the Hyuuga isn't the peeping tom type. Whatever his reasons were, I can sense that…perhaps he needed that. Let him be. Lets go to sleep. I want to put this all behind us, and begin fresh tomorrow."

"What are we doing tomorrow?"

"Starting our life together."

0 0 0 0 0

A/N: FINISHED. AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA I bet you never saw that coming! Me neither. It seriously just ran across my mind, and I went with it, and I absolutely love this ending. I love it because even if Neji isn't a pervert, I am, and it was necessary to put one more lemon in here. I also love it because although the story itself is closed, so much is left in the open for your little minds to ponder, dear readers! Like, what will the town think? Will Sakura ever let go? What will Neji do with his new discoveries? Naruto? Tsunade? GAH! I love it love it love it. And I really hope you do, too. Tell all your friends!

And, finally, as a thanks to all those who supported me, I am going to write quick little thank yous individually. I am sticking this at the end so you can easily skip it if you wish, but I felt a lot of love with my first fic and wanted to personally thank everyone (with a signed comment, that is). I won't do this with every fiction I write, just this one.

MinaVarsa: This was a weird pairing, very difficult. So I am so happy you felt it works! And yay for not being too sappy! It was easy to start falling into that trap here.

EscaChick: You are so sweet! I read fics all in one sitting, too. I like it that way—it feeds my addiction.

Tsuki no Kitsune: I really appreciate your review—I shouldn't let stuff like that get to me—the stats showed ppl reading. I was worried, but your review helped me feel good about this. Thanks!

Somegirl—your name made me giggle. Thanks so much for reading and reviewing!

Heika! I love that you read this during school—I can imagine your teacher's faces as they realized your "research" was actually erotic fiction! Still, thank you so much for a lovely review.

Jasmine Starlight: I forget sometimes that just because I am not in school, doesn't mean everyone else is. Thank you so much for your continued support of my writing. You've been here since practically the beginning!

Evilchild666: Thanks for your review. I am so happy this came off as believable—it is a very strange pairing!

Flying Wolf Tamer: I absolutely adore your pen name. Thanks for your "story fucking rocks!" reviews—I giggled every time.

Foxie-sama: You are too cute, with your huggles and such! I was super happy when I finally decided to end the "I can't be with you" phase. I was having a rut, and almost fell into the trap of relying on that for continuous filler chapters. I'm glad someone else noticed that and called me on it!

SchwartzViolet: I was super happy when you said "Bloody brilliant." Not for the brilliant part, but for the bloody—it reminded me of my year in the UK!

Wiinker: thanks so much!

Nesssachiel: I didn't end finish the story arc with Itachi, I know. But… I just felt like I would be rushing the story along too much if I made Sasuke able to fight him. I like leaving it open ended—another writer may feel free to pick up where I've left off. That would be awesome. Or you can just decide how the story ends itself. Either way, thank you so much for your support!

Setsuna37313: Thanks for the suggestions. I am now plotting some yuri goodness, thanks to you! I was glad someone challenged me, because now this is finished, I already have some pieces to move into! Thank you!

Nissie: Man, you've been so great. And now that you said something, I think a Neji/Shika fic would be fabulous! Thanks for all of your reviews!

Jamie: You gave me some tips. I really appreciate that. I never went back to fix Hinata, but that did not mean I didn't take your advice to heart. Thank you!

Peter Kim: Your review was so amusing, thank you!

RukaIayLomperGay: You cutie, thanks so much! "good job 'govner?" I was saying that to my friends for weeks after!

Guest: Kiba fucking like an animal. OMGAWD. So hot.

Kawaii kitsune-kun: You have been amazing, particularly earlier on. I am sure you remember. This fic almost headed toward disaster, but you really helped me to get it on the right track—thank you so much for that.

Aozora yume: I miss my Emily. I knew school was going to pick up and to be honest, I stopped caring about mistakes. But I will never, ever forget all of the help you gave me in helping to make this fic possible. Thank you so much!

If I forgot anyone, sorry. Thank you to everyone, and keep on the lookout! I have already started two fics that should be up and running soon!


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